The Caged Raven
by hitokiri-battousai.oro
Summary: Those visions she saw were all filled with red, blood and death. They weren't hers though, they were his vision. They both share an invisible link which no one can see or break. "I've been waiting for you." semi-dark fic. Ratings may change.
1. Chapter 1

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

A/N: Just trying out something new. I've always wanted to try a semi-dark fic with SasuxHina. This will be a new challenge that I'm eager to try out.

'_thoughts'_

"dialogue"

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 1: Seal

Everything was a bright mass of light. Only three people remained on the battle field struggling to fight for their lives. Hinata was barely hanging on to consciousness, while lying in her own pool of blood, as the mass of light grew bigger with a deafening sound. Then, everything went still. A pink haired woman held the man's right side whereas the blond one held his left. Everyone else in the area were either unconscious or just barely, but no one was spared from wounds and injuries. It was the biggest battle, a battle which would affect the entire shinobi world. It was a battle of destiny.

The raven haired man had a maddening look in his eyes. He was smiling with insanity, despite knowing that he had lost. He was bleeding all over with his body limp with nothing but the support of his two former friends. No, they weren't holding him for support, they were holding him back. It was time they seal this man away from history. Ino who was standing at a distance took the signal and summoned a scroll with numerous seals. This man's soul and body would be forever locked away.

Hinata stared back at the man's red eyes, both from blood and the color of the Sharingan. The look in his eyes was making her sick to the stomach. Sakura's urgent order to everyone fell deaf up on her ears due to the explosion. Everyone else was far enough away or had their eyes shut.

"Don't look into his eyes!"

It was too late for Hinata. She had locked gazes with the red pool of his eyes. Everything seemed to flow in slow motion. The tomoe within his eyes swirled slowly as if it was making some kind of lock combination or a seal. She could see his lips curve sickeningly into a grin before he lashed out in laughter. Others may think that he had finally lost his sanity, but little did they know that it was a laughter of victory. The moment Hinata had locked gazes with the man, the tables had turned unknowingly.

* * *

The sound of the beeping monitor jerked her awake. The smell of antiseptics made her head spin, it was then she knew that she was in the hospital. Next to her, she saw Neji all bandaged up sitting on a stool next to her.

"Neji nii-san?"

"Hinata-sama! You're finally awake," he said with relief.

"How long have I been here?" she asked.

Neji had a grim look on his face.

"You were the closest to the explosion so you took the most damage. You were out for almost two months."

"Two months?" she was in disbelief.

"What about everyone else?"

"They were all discharged from the hospital before you did, including me."

"What about Naruto-kun?"

"Naruto's fine. Surprisingly his condition wasn't as bad as we expected it to be, thanks to the Kyuubi. He was just in the hospital for two weeks."

"Oh."

A pregnant silence grew in the room. Clearing his throat Neji decided to offer her water.

"Hinata-sama, please have some water."

He took a bottle from the table next to her bed and handed it to her. She downed the water gratefully.

"What happened to Sasuke-kun?"

"Ino managed to seal him with the scroll provided by Tsunade. But I still think it isn't a good idea to seal him away. He deserves death."

Hinata noticed his clenched fist. She knew how much the entire village hated Sasuke had done. He had nearly succeeded in destroying the entire village. If it weren't for Naruto and the others, Konoha would definitely be wiped off just like what happened with Pein.

"Well, Naruto-kun can't bear to have his best friend die. Besides, we all know that holding Sasuke as prisoner in this village would make other countries even more furious. They're all out for his blood after all the crimes he had committed. Tsunade-sama had decided on the best course of action and that was to seal him away. The seal can't be broken right?"

"No it can't Tsunade-sama said it was impossible to release the seal. The only one who would know how to read the seal to unlock it would be the person being sealed himself. The scroll was designed in such a way that the 'key' has been written inside the seal. But even if Sasuke knew how to release it, he wouldn't be able to release if from the inside. Someone outside would have to do it."

Hinata sighed with relief. This is good, everything would finally return to peace. Naruto wouldn't have to suffer anymore.

"Hinata-sama, I should leave. Visiting time is over."

He gracefully stood from his seat.

"I'll come by again tomorrow with Kiba and Shino. I hope for your speedy recovery."

He gave her a gentle smile before bowing. The soft click of the door welcomed the silence once more with only the sound of the beeping monitor.

All of a sudden, her head began to pound. The pain was immense, making her feel as if she had cracked her head open. She bit back a yelp as the pain increased.

'_What's happening?' _She thought frantically.

She saw visions of red before slipping away into darkness.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, I know this chapter is super short… BUT I promise I'll make it a bit longer in the next chapter. I just needed something to start me off. Please review and tell me what you guys think of the story!


	2. Chapter 2

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

A/N: Here's Chappie 2, hope y'all enjoy! Oh, and how about a little review about what you guys want to see in the story. Throw me a bone here will ya? Maybe a bit of ideas here and there? Thanks!

'_Thoughts'_

"Dialogue"

* * *

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 2: Strange Happenings

Once again Hinata had woken up to the soft whispers within the room. She could feel something cool and wet on her forehead. A cold ice pack was placed on her to cool down, what Tsunade had concluded, her fever.

"Her condition should be stable now. I think she suffered severe migraine because of her fever. Her temperature was two degrees above average."

It was Tsunade's hushed voice explaining the young woman's condition to her cousin, Neji.

"Thank you Tsunade-sama."

Neji turned around to face Hinata with a worried look after she had left.

"Hinata-sama you should have told me that you were feeling very ill."

"I'm sorry Neji nii-san. I was feeling perfectly fine before you left. The headache just suddenly came shortly after."

Her cousin nodded in understanding.

"That headache must be an early symptom for your fever. Speaking of which, Kiba and Shino were here for a short while before they were sent home."

Hinata felt bad that she wasn't able to see her two best friends after she had regained consciousness. Now, she had missed her chance because of her fever.

"Please tell them that I'm sorry for not being able to see them. I promise that I'll treat them to yakiniku once I make a full recovery."

Neji's features softened.

"I'll make sure to tell them that."

Just then, a soft knock was made on the door. It was a part time nurse who had been working as one of Tsunade's nurses. This nurse was none other than Tenten.

Hinata didn't miss the glint in Neji's eyes when he saw her. He looked like a puppy that finally had his master home after a long day of waiting.

"How are you feeling Hinata-chan? I was panicking like crazy when I saw you knocked out cold with a high fever!"

The patient looked at her quizzically.

"You were the one who helped me?"

"Yeah. Lucky it happened to be my shift," she replied.

"Thank you Tenten-san."

"It's my duty as a friend and as a nurse so don't worry about it!"

Hinata noticed the somewhat restless look beginning to shadow over her cousin's face. They probably had planned a date which Neji had been really looking forward to. The least she could do was to not keep them back.

She cleared her throat for their attention.

"Tsunade-sama said that my condition is stable now so I should be fine alone. Tenten-san your shift is over and I don't want to keep you. Neji nii-san, visiting hours are over. The two of you should go home," Hinata initiated.

The couple looked at each other with uncertainty.

"I'll be fine, really! Besides, Sakura-san would be here for her shift soon right?"

"Well-"

"Ten-Ten, I think my cousin should be alright."

He stole a glance at Hinata, giving her a grin of gratitude.

"Come, let's go."

"Alright…."

Neji impatiently grabbed the kunoichi's hand, dragging her along, as they headed out the door.

Hinata wasn't blind or stupid. The signs were everywhere; everyone had moved on except for her. They were all adults now, no longer juveniles with their childish crushes or fights. All of them were already twenty one or above. Most of her friends had found themselves a partner to be with.

The biggest blow of all was when Naruto had confessed that he and Sakura had been going out for a while in secret since three years ago. It took all her courage to not burst out into tears in front of the love of her life, or in this case, her childhood's crush. She had always known that Naruto and Sakura would eventually belong together. She had seen all the signs as well as all they went through together since they were young. But she decided to stay blind and naive. She acted as if nothing had changed. She was afraid to face the truth since she wasn't ready to let go of him yet.

Despite the crushing revelation, she managed to forgive and forget over time. She was mostly left alone in the village since missions were getting less. Ino and Chouji seemed to have some chemistry going on, which neither realized yet. Shikamaru had occasionally gone to Suna to visit lover, Temari if his missions required him to go there. Kiba and Shino were now two of the best trackers in the land of fire. Thus, they were frequently sent on retrieval missions. Hinata however, was mostly at the village helping with trivial matters. The most eventful mission she had so far was during Sasuke's retrieval which was nearly two months ago.

She should be happy with the fact that everyone had moved on. She should smile along with them especially knowing all the hardships each of them had gone through. They had managed to find happiness in the end. But why does she feel empty and left behind? She couldn't help but to feel out of place whenever she's in their presence. She felt even more of a failure. Not only was she a failure in her father's eyes but she was a failure in life as well. She can't even move on like everyone else did! Tears of frustration dripped on to her fisted white blanket.

'_I want to be stronger! I want to move ahead with everyone else…I don't want to be left behind alone…'_

She quickly rubbed her tears away as she felt Sakura's presence coming near her room. She quickly hid herself beneath her blanket while facing the window, pretending to sleep.

Sakura's footsteps came to a halt through the door.

"Oh, looks like she's asleep. I guess I'll do the check up tomorrow then," she whispered.

Sakura gently adjusted her patient's pillow before flicking the lights out.

Once the room was empty, Hinata cracked her bloodshot eyes open. Her tears wouldn't stop flowing, she felt so helpless. The room was silent except for the sound of her air conditioning. The annoying sound of the beeping monitor was no longer there after she had transferred rooms.

A new presence made Hinata froze with chills running down her spine. She turned around defensively only to come to face with nothing but her dark room.

"W-who's there?"

No one replied.

She cautiously got up from her bed, slowly letting her eyes adjust to the darkness. The moment she set her feet onto the cold tile floor, she heard something rolling towards her feet. It rolled and rolled until something soft made contact with her toes.

Looking down, her eyes met with two bright sharingan eyes boring into hers. It was an Uchiha's decapitated head with blood mercilessly pouring out of its severed head. She fell helplessly on her bottom as she shrieked at the top of her lungs.

The lights flicked back on with Sakura rushing in, ready to attack any intruder. Seeing that the room was clear from any threat, she relaxed her posture. She made a dash towards the woman who was sitting on the floor with her legs sprawled, chocking on her tears.

"Hinata-chan! What's wrong?"

Hinata was speechless. The only sound produced out of her was the choking of her sobs. The head had mysteriously disappeared the second the lights were on. It was as if she had been imagining it. But the warm fresh blood seeping out of it felt so real. She looked at her feet for inspection only to find that they were clean and spotless.

Her sobs only increased with her confusion. What was going on?

Sakura brought her into a secured while trying to calm her down.

"Hush…It's alright Hinata-chan. I'm right here; everything's alright."

She clung onto her white coat not wanting to let go her only source of security.

"S-Sakura-san…"

Sakura gently hoisted her up to bring her back to her bed where she would sit.

"Stay here while I grab you a warm cup of tea. Then we'll talk."

She was about to turn when Hinata grabbed her sleeves.

"P-please, let me go with you. Don't leave me alone…" she begged.

The doctor couldn't deny her patient's plea. It was obvious that Hinata was scared out of her wits by something. She was going to try to coax it out of her.

"Alright, but can you walk?"

"Y-yes."

Sakura offered her arm for support.

"Hold on to me just in case okay?"

Hinata was feeling a little bit disorientated from her fever, which had cooled down immensely by now. The recently added shock didn't help her head feel any better. She gratefully looped her arm around the other's to support herself.

They were sitting in the hospital cafeteria drinking their hot beverages. Hinata's hands were slightly trembling while she held her cup.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Sakura coaxed.

Hinata shook her head.

"Thank you for your concern Sakura-san. But it was nothing. I think I was either having a nightmare or imagining things."

"What did you see?"

"I-I don't remember."

Hinata didn't mean to lie but she really needed to. She wanted to get off this topic real badly and talk about something else. She mentally shook the horrific image away.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. You know how dreams are… it's normal you forget them when you wake up."

"Alright then, I guess I'll leave at that."

Hinata mentally sighed in relief.

Sakura knew Hinata was lying. She could detect the facial expressions and her attitude. If one thing's for sure, Hinata was a terrible liar. Anyone could read her like a book. Besides, she had mentioned that she could have had imagined it; if she had imagined it, wouldn't she had remembered it vividly? She understood that nightmares are easily forgotten, but an imagination? Looks like the Hyuuga had made a careless slip. However, Sakura didn't feel like pressuring the other woman so she decided to drop the subject. Hinata looked mentally drained as well. She knew that no matter how much coaxing she gave her, Hinata would still not budge. That's just how she was, timid and fragile on the outside, but on the inside her pride can be as stubborn as the 'will of the fire'. Sakura and the other shinobis had acknowledged this side of her ever since her display of courage in front of the Akatsuki leader, Pein.

Across from her, Hinata was fingering her cup uneasily. Her pale delicate fingers traced over the cup's outline. She felt the need to cheer her up somehow…

"Hinata-chan there's something I want to tell you."

Hinata looked up from her drink.

"I have great news. If your test results are exceptional by tomorrow, you can be discharged!"

"That's really good news! Thank you so much!"

Hinata excitedly grabbed her doctor's hand in appreciation. Her pearly lavender eyes shone like pearls as she smiled.

"But Hinata, if you feel the need to stay a bit longer, I can always-"

"No it's fine. Besides, it's been really uneventful staying in the hospital."

Sakura laughed. "Well, that's true. Alright then, if all is well then I can write a report to Tsunade-sama to discharge you tomorrow."

Hinata used her free hand to cover her yawn.

"The tea I gave you is specially brewed to calm you. It's usually used to help cure insomniacs. You'll be able to sleep like a baby in no time!"

After finishing their beverages, Sakura walked her back to her room. Hinata was too tired to recall the terrible scene from before. The Hyuuga eventually drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

The next day came with news that Hinata was ready to be discharged. They only had to go through one last physical check up to make sure everything was really alright. Seeing that there was nothing wrong with her condition, Hinata was sent home. She was planning to celebrate her recovery with her two best friends. Unfortunately, Tsunade had informed her that they were away on a mission. She decided she would celebrate with Sakura and Naruto instead. Yet, again, they seemed to have other matters to attend to. Neji and Tenten were nowhere to be found. Her father and sister were outside the village as well.

She couldn't help but to feel disappointed. She was really looking forward to see everyone again, yet something would always prevent her from doing so. She didn't feel like staying at home so she went to pay Kurenai a visit.

Kurenai had a beautiful healthy daughter who was now five years old. The little ball of energy pounced on the girl the moment she saw her at the door. Kurenai ushered the younger woman in.

"Hinata-chan, it's good to see that you have fully recovered. Koto and I went to visit you last week when you were still unconscious. We were actually planning to visit you later today. But I guess we don't need to anymore."

The two women chattered happily over tea while the child busied herself with toys. Koto was the most darling little girl Hinata had ever met. She looked everything like her mother; from the color of her eyes to her tousled curly hair, except for her mischievous smile or the occasional glint of mischief in her eyes. Those were the only things which resemble the child to her father, Asuma. Hinata looked at the little girl as she played, taking in her features and imagining how beautiful she would be when she grows up. Her train of thought was cut off by Kurenai's question.

"Is there anything you need help with?"

Kurenai hadn't miss the way her body slightly jumped.

Hinata blushed while stuttering over her words.

"Actually I-I…"

Her former teacher gave a light chuckle.

"Hinata, I know that you're here to ask me something. You always seem to visit when there's something on your mind. Just tell me any of your problems."

Kurenai made a motion to fill more tea into her guest's cup, which Hinata gladly accepted. She leaned her body slightly forward to bring her cup towards the pouring pot. Once the cup was filled to the rim, she recoiled back to her seat. The pot was settled gently back on the table with a soft thud.

"W-well Kurenai-sensei… I feel that everyone has moved on except for me."

Kurenai looked at her former pupil with worry.

"Hinata what made you say such things? You're already twenty one and I think you've done a really good job in getting over that knuckle head. Isn't that proof enough that you've moved along with everyone else?"

Hinata's old habit of fidgeting her fingers resurfaced.

"W-well, that's not what I really mean. Everyone has someone or a purpose to live for. What I'm trying to say is that everyone has found a meaning to live their future. But I'm still stuck the way I was. I feel even more helpless than before."

"Don't say that Hinata! Never say those kind of things ever again do you hear me?" her former teacher scolded.

Hinata looked at her with wide eyes. She was never yelled at by Kurenai before.

Kurenai realized that she had raised her voice at the younger woman more than necessary.

"Hinata, I didn't mean to yell at you. It's just that…Why can't you realize how special you are? You're kind and selfless which are your best qualities. Everyone is special in their own way. You degrade yourself to such a ridiculous level. You are a lot stronger than you think; remember the fight you put up with Pein? All I can say is you should have more faith in yourself. One day Hinata, you will find someone who would be your pillar for support, shower you with love, and give you a reason to live for everyday. Just like how I live for my Koto."

Hinata hugged Kurenai. She was surprised that what used to be a timid shy girl hadn't cried at all.

"Thank you sensei! I'll never forget your words."

Kurenai patted her ebony silky hair.

"It's getting late sensei, I think I should get going," she sniffled.

She withdrew herself from the comforting hug, despite her want for more comfort. But if she wanted to be stronger, she had to stop depending on others for comfort all the time. She should suck it up and deal with her own problems head on with a smile, like Naruto does.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay for dinner?"

"I'm fine thank you. I think father and Hanabi should be home by now."

Kurenai walked her to the door with Koto holding onto Hinata's hand.

"Take care alright? Maybe we should go shopping one of these days."

Hinata giggled.

"Of course! I'll see you again next time."

She bent down to an eye level with the little girl. The little giggled when Hinata patted her hair.

"Bye Koto! Be a good girl for your mother alright?"

The little girl gave her a large toothy grin with a few missing teeth.

"Bye onee-chan!"

The sun was beginning to set on her way home. Crows cawed above their head as they flew below the orange sky.

By the time she reached home, she had requested for a full warm bath. The maids were ecstatic upon her return and rushed to prepare the bath without hesitation. It had been about two months since she last seen her home. She was glad to be back in the comfort of her family compound. She wondered whether Hanabi and her father were home. She had heard from Sakura and the nurses that the two of them had been visiting her quite frequently when she was still unconscious, that was, until they were called out of the village. They told her that the two of them seemed to be very worried over her.

Over the years, her father had tried many ways to mend their broken relationship. He was softer towards her, trying to strike a pleasant conversation with her whenever he could. However, despite his efforts, Hinata could never forget the scorn look of disappointment in her father's eyes from the past. She felt even more pathetic now because not only her father, but the whole household, excluding Neji and her sister, would look at her with pity since she could never be the heiress. Every time she saw those gazes, she would feel smaller and more pathetic. It made her wonder whether being away from the household for two months had made any difference to them at all. Or maybe, things were a lot better when she wasn't even present.

After the bath was ready, Hinata stepped into the bath house. She stripped out of her clothing before dipping herself into the warm bath. She gave out a satisfied sigh as her muscles relaxed.

Her thoughts roamed back to the day she saw Naruto's last battle with Sasuke. Why couldn't she remember what happened after the blinding explosion? There seemed to be a missing puzzle which she couldn't fill. Although she doesn't know what was missing, she could feel that something felt off. She closed her eyes at the feel of the warm thick water sloshed against her soft skin.

'_Thick water?'_

Then the sharp sickening metallic smell struck her nose. Her eyes jerked open to look at the water she was bathing in. It was not water she was bathing in, but blood. Thick dark red blood. Before she could scream, she felt something grip her by ankle, dragging her deeper into the tub of blood. She struggled for air, but all she got were the metallic tasting blood she was choking on as she struggled. More hands snaked around her body as they dragged her down. All she could see beneath were the dark red which was beginning to sting her eyes. She saw hands groping all over her body. What scared her most was that they were only limbs with no body attached.

'_I'm going to die…Someone, please help me!'_

She heard loud muffled banging on the door. The last thing she could remember was feeling someone's arm pulling her out of the tub filled blood.

"Hinata-sama! Hinata-sama!"

Hinata blinked her eyes open. She laid on her futon with her sleeping yukata securely on.

"Neji nii-san?"

"Hinata-sama! I found you drowning in your bath. Did you pass out because it was too hot?"

Worry was clearly drawn over his entire feature.

"Neji nii-san, I-I…I think I was too exhausted," she said lamely.

Hinata had decided to keep this incident and the one at the hospital tight lipped. She didn't want people to think she had lost it. Whatever had happened to her had felt so real. If they were to think she was mentally unstable, who knows how long they'll keep her locked up in the hospital for examination. She swore that there was nothing mentally wrong with her.

"Then I suggest you have an early dinner before retiring," he suggested.

"Yes…I should. Thank you for your concern, Neji nii-san."

"Is there anything else you need?"

"How about something that would help me sleep? Like that tea Sakura-san gave me yesterday night."

"Yesterday night? Did something happen?"

"Uh… no, just nightmares. I've been getting a lot of them lately so I wasn't able to sleep well."

"In that case, I'll ask one of our maids to fetch them for you as soon as possible. You should rest for now."

She thanked him once more before heading to her room to rest before her meal. Strange happenings had been occurring to her lately since yesterday. She had a feeling that this one won't be the end of it just yet.


	3. Chapter 3

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

A/N: Well, here you go guys, chappie 3 yay!

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 3: The beginning

Those strange happening to Hinata had gone for a week. Many of them involve suicide attempts, for instance, the one in the bath. Other nights when she screamed, she would say it was just a nightmare or she was just imagining things. How many times can a person use the same excuses without giving the impression that they have something wrong going on mentally? Neji was starting to notice the strange behavior of his cousin and decided to call Sakura for help.

Her taunting delusions had been happening once every night for seven days now. The latest incident was the worst. They had found Hinata falling off the Hokage Mountain during the dead of the night. Her explanation had been that a boy covered in blood had pushed her off the cliff. However, when a thorough investigation had been made for the said child, there was no trace of him at all despite Hinata's detailed description of the boy. She had suffered severe concussion but luckily, it wasn't life threatening. A boy with sharingan eyes? The only one left of the Uchiha clan was Uchiha Sasuke. Tsunade had sternly confirmed that the man was sealed safely away with the ANBU guarding the scroll. He was nothing but a caged harmless bird.

Although Hinata had promised herself to keep tight lipped about the incidents, it was starting to take toll on her mentally. Everything felt so real. It was as if the Uchihas were haunting her or to be more precise, tried to murder her. She needed someone to help her. She claimed that the sharingan wielders were after her. When she was asked for evidence, she would have none. She would always say they would disappear after they finished their deed.

Neji quickened his pace early in the morning to the Konoha hospital where he would seek help. After waiting for about an hour in the waiting room, he was called by one of the nurses. Indicating his thanks, he followed the nurse to Sakura's office. The doctor motioned him to sit down on the vacant seat in front of her desk.

"Sakura-san, there's something I need to discuss with you about Hinata's behavior."

Sakura looked up to the man from her clipboard. They were both sitting in her office after Sakura had finished an operation.

"Yes, I've heard about her through whispers…"

"Do you think she's, well… mentally unwell?" Neji was trying to find a nicer way to name the term 'mentally ill'. He was already uncomfortable with the thought of having Hinata being in such a state.

Sakura tapped her pen against her clipboard thoughtfully.

"I can't say for sure. I would need Ino to assist me in this field. She specializes in psychology after all."

"But first, I need you to tell me in detail the first incident that had occurred after she was discharged from the hospital," she continued.

"She was drowning in the bath. I thought it was because of the temperature but she told me it was because she was exhausted. I found out she was Kurenai for the whole day, but she said they never did anything that would make her so exhausted. They only chatted over tea. She returned straight home during sunset."

Sakura gave him a questioning look.

"Sunset? That would be around six… I discharged her at around three. Which means, she was only with Kurenai for no more than three hours? She shouldn't be so exhausted that she would actually pass out in the bath. Are there any other incidents?"

"The latest one, when she fell off the Hokage Mountain. You were treating her for her wounds that night by the way. She said a boy tried to push her."

"Why would she go there in the first place?"

"I don't know. She wouldn't say."

"Any other incidents?"

Neji's expression hardened.

"There were seven incidents in total. Three of which we know already. The other four were catching herself on fire; screaming hysterically when a kunai merely scraped her arm; suffocating herself during her sleep; and the most disturbing one was screaming and yelling at someone to stop while she was clearly stabbing herself in many different areas."

She was also the one who had treated Hinata's multiple stab wounds. When she came in with Neji, he had used a cover story. He told her that they were wounds she received on a mission. Of course, Neji wouldn't want to say something like "My cousin has been having delusions and she's trying to kill herself." No, that would make matters even worse for Hinata. Even Hiashi was telling him to keep his mouth shut about it. Alas, one of the maids had accidentally leaked out the secret. Eventually, the gossips had spread like a wild fire. Everyone had been worried about her, especially her two teammates.

Sakura looked at Neji with worry, then a question running through her mind. What was going on with Hinata?

"What were her reasons?"

"At first she would always tell me she was either sleep walking or having nightmares, which I find it hard to believe. But after the fourth incident, she started to tell me what was really happening."

"And?"

"She said there were always people, dead people, trying to kill her."

Sakura massaged her temples in to ebb away the slight headache. This was going to be a tough nut to crack. What had cause Hinata's pretty little head to be in such turmoil?

"Neji…I'm sorry to tell you this…but I think your cousin is suffering from a mental disorder. She wasn't just having hallucinations or nightmares; she was trying to kill herself."

"I can clearly see that. That's why I came here to seek your help."

Sakura wasn't expecting for what was Neji about to do. Damn his pride, if he had to throw it away for the sake of saving his dear cousin, he wouldn't hesitate to do so. Swallowing back his pride, he stood upright from his chair then bowed deeply with plea.

"Haruno Sakura-san, I beg of you. Please, save Hinata-sama!"

The pinkette stared at the man kneeling before her seat in shock. His plea only made her feel more pressurized.

"N-Neji, what are you doing? Get up!"

Sakura was starting to feel uncomfortable in her seat.

"Sakura-san! I would put my life on the line all to save Hinata-sama. But it seems that there's no way I can help her with my own hands right now. The only person I could turn to for help is you."

He bowed deeper until his forehead touched the cool tile of the floor.

With softened eyes, she slowly got up from her chair and put a warm hand filled with assurance on his hunched shoulders.

"Don't worry Neji, I'll do everything I can. I promise."

The Hyuuga lifted his head with a soft relieved smile tugged on his lips.

Naruto walked in Sakura's office to pick her up for lunch. It was well past twelve, she should be having her lunch break soon. He was walking through the corridor leading to her office, when he saw Neji walking out of Sakura's room. Neji didn't look very well, since his feature looked rather pale, then again, he was always pale. But this time, he looked sickly pale.

_'Wonder what's wrong with him?'_ the blonde eyed him worriedly.

Straightening up his gesture, he put up his usual cheerful smile in hopes to lift up the other man's spirit.

"Hey Neji! Is everything alright? You don't look too well. Did you ask Sakura-chan to check up on you?"

The other man gave him a nod of acknowledgement.

"Good afternoon to you too Naruto."

Naruto returned him with one of his biggest smile, which Neji couldn't help but to smirk back in reply. What can he say? His smile was deadly contagious no matter how stupid it looked.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for your concern."

The two of them stood awkwardly in the corridor, unable to think of a way to strike a conversation. They hadn't seen much of each other lately, which made it even more awkard.

Neji decided to take the initiave.

"By the way Naruto, congratulations for being elected to be the next Hokage. When will the succession take place?"

"Oh thanks!" he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. It was something he liked to do when he was shy or embarrassed.

"Umm… Granny Tsunade said that she'll be retiring next year. She said she was getting too old for this stuff. She just wanted to relax and drink her sake in her retirement home or something along that line…"

Neji chuckled.

"Oh, that's right Neji, how's Hinata? Her condition didn't sound very good the last I heard about her."

The rumors were starting to get around the village, and Naruto happened to catch wind of it. With widened eyes, he waved his hands in defense.

"Ah! Sorry about that, I didn't mean to sound so insensible. It's just I'm really worried as her friend."

"I understand, I'm very grateful for your concern. It's good that Hinata-sama has a friend like you."

Naruto retrieved his hands back to his sides. Then, just like what Sakura did before, he put a strong comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, I'm your friend too! Anything you need just tell me alright? I'll be there to help. Everyone in this village is my family."

"Naruto…"

"Sakura will probably do everything in her power to help Hinata. There's not much I could do to help, but I can offer you support!"

He fought back the tears which were beginning to overtake his vision. Neji had never felt so touched.

_'Geez, I'm starting to act like Lee and Gai-sensei!'_

"Anyway, I need to fetch Sakura-chan for lunch. Sorry I can't stay and chat with you longer. Tell Hinata I said hi will ya? Later!"

With that, he gave a wave as he ran down towards the doctor's office. Neji couldn't help but smirk. It was good that there was someone like Naruto, there was something about him that could bring anyone's spirits up. He was glad that he would be the leader of the village. He was something the village needs after all. Someone to keep their heads up high even in their toughest times. He turned to walk back home, trying to figure out a way to convince Hinata to go to the appointment.

Naruto walked in the room with a click of the door. He could see his lover holding her head in both her hands with frustration. He couldn't see her face since her head was lowered. She seemed to be in deep thought for her to not notice him.

"Hey." He said gently.

She jerked her head up. Her emerald eyes clashed with his sky blue ones. She never got tired of his beautiful eyes. They always had the magic to take her breath away.

"O-oh Naruto sorry I didn't notice you were here. What are you doing here anyway?"

He looked at her dumbfounded.

"Uh, I promised to pick you up for lunch, remember?"

Sakura's eyes widened in realization.

"I'm so sorry! I totally forgot, there were so many things I had to take care of today and it completely left my mind."

She made a motion to clear up her desk, only to have her hand caught by Naruto's gentle hold.

"Sakura…if there's anything wrong, you know you can tell me."

He grabbed a vacant chair to settle it next to hers. He could see Sakura's barrier slowly cracking as her delicate lips quivered. He leaned in closer towards her, encouraging her to speak.

"Oh Naruto! It's just so hard! I promised Neji that I would do everything I can to help Hinata, but with the condition she's in right now, I don't know if I can really heal her. What if I fail? She's one of my precious friends and I'll do anything to help her!"

He listened intently through her sobs of broken words. He knew the inner turmoil she must be in right now. The feeling of the possibility for not being able to save your precious someone. Just like how he failed Sasuke.

He shook his head mentally, now was not the time to be brooding over his own failure. He needed to listen to Sakura because she needed someone to talk to. So he listened to her dutifully until her sobs died down.

"I…I'm sorry! I shouldn't be giving you more burdens, especially since you haven't gotten over Sasuke…"

He pulled her towards a tight hug.

"Just forget about him already. Aren't you supposed to help me forget about him? I had to do what was best for him and the village. In that scroll, he won't be able to feel time, pain, sadness or anything anymore. He'll be in a peaceful sleep." He muffled through her hair.

She could hear his gentle shallow breathing. Naruto was fighting against his feeling of guilt. The thought that Naruto couldn't stop beating himself for betraying his 'brother' made her blood boil. It wasn't his fault! He didn't betray Sasuke, but rather saved him in a way. It was Sasuke who betrayed him!

"Just shut up! It's not your fault. It's his! That bastard-"

She felt his encircling embrace leave her body, brushing away the mental whimper of the lost contact. She was now at arm's length. Sky blue eyes looked down casted. Sakura felt her heart drop to the bottom of her stomach.

"Sakura, let's not talk about him anymore. Let's just move on…"

Guilt overtook her entire conscience.

"I shouldn't have said that…"

The room went into cold silence. Only the sound of the ticking clock echoed through the quiet office.

With a sharp inhale of breath, the blonde offered her one of his ever famous grin.

"Will you look at the time? We've wasted a lot of your lunch time. We better leave now if you still want to eat lunch. I'm starving!"

That was just like Naruto, trying to forget the pain and move on. He was always shouldering those burdens alone for nearly his entire life. But now, he won't be facing those burdens alone anymore. Sakura had promised herself, since the day they started to be a couple, that she would shoulder them together with him. She would hold his hand, keeping him away from loneliness and sadness.

Back at the Hyuuga mansion, Neji was having a difficult time convincing Hinata to go to the hospital in a civilized manner; he was doing his best to not snap at the persistent woman.

"Neji-nii san! How could you lie to me like this? You said you believed me…I thought I trusted you!"

"Hinata-sama, it's just a general check up. Nothing more I promise."

"You're lying! You think I'm going crazy aren't you? That's why you want me to get a check up."

Neji looked away from the former heiress's tear filled eyes.

"Hinata-sama, listen to me…"

The conversation was getting nowhere. It was out of character for Hinata to act with such outburst. It seems her condition hadn't been getting better.

She got up from her futon and rushed towards a corner in crouched defensive posture. She was starting to form an invisible shield for herself with her arms encircling around her knees. Her hair and yukata were disheveled. He couldn't stop looking at state without feeling sick himself. This was not the Hinata he knew. This made his resolve to get her to see Sakura even stronger. He fisted his knuckles and set his lips into a firm line. He stalked towards the pathetic looking woman cowering in the corner.

"D-don't come any closer!"

She was shrieking at the top of her lungs, which Neji resisted the urge to wince.

The sliding door of her room slammed open with harsh footsteps invading.

Hiashi stood in his proud posture, glaring down at Hinata with crossed arms. He was starting to get tired of her childish behavior.

"Hinata, you will stop acting like such a child this instant. This is outrageously pathetic! You will go to the hospital tomorrow and that is an order."

Seeing that she was about to retort, he snapped his head towards Neji.

"Do not waste your time trying to coax this pathetic girl. Do everything you must to drag her there even if you have to knock her out or injure her I. Don't. Care." He bit out the words like venom.

The clan leader glared daggers at her once more before stepping out. Hanabi could be seen peeking from the side of the door worriedly at her older sister before following her father.

The next morning came like a trial for Neji. To him, it was a challenge worthy to be classified as an S-rank mission. Trying to get Hinata to go to the hospital was like trying to talk to a rock. She wouldn't budge an inch from her corner. Injuring her was out the question, so the option he had was to somehow knock her out. It was impossible to reach her at arm's length without being hissed at and having her palms ready to strike. She was just like a cat that was cornered. An idea struck him; he reached for his pouch to produce a senbon. This should be enough to drug her into unconsciousness. Using his deadly ANBU skills, he threw the senbon in one swift strike with deadly precision. With only one try, he hit the mark. Neji was surprised at his rather easy victory. Then again, Hinata wasn't in a stable condition, so it was expected that her reflexes were a little off. He waited until her struggle for consciousness subsided before carrying her over to the hospital where he knew Sakura and Ino would be expecting them.

"Neji you knocked her out!" Tenten accused disbelievingly.

Tenten was in charge of the reception today and Neji was waiting for her to take him to the appointed room.

"I had no other choice. I had to," he shrugged.

"But-"

"Tenten, I need Sakura to see her now."

"She's in room 302 with Ino; you know where that is right?"

He nodded.

"Tell me how it went, alright?"

"Sure."

He rushed off without wasting another minute.

Both Ino and Sakura were dressed in their professional attire, waiting patiently for Hinata to arrive. They were relieved to see an unconscious Hinata when Neji arrived. This would make their job a lot easier.

"Good, you're here. Settle her down on that bed over there," Ino directed.

Neji did as he was instructed, settling his cousin down on the bed hidden behind the curtains. Sakura pointed towards a seat near the door.

"Neji, you wait by that seat while we check her up."

"Please take care of her." He said before settling himself in his seat with nervousness gripping his heart.

"Don't worry, we're just going to check what's going on in her head," Ino reassured.

Once he was settled in his seat, the doctors nodded towards each other, indicating that they were ready to carry out the examination. Sakura shut the curtain closed in a swift motion.

"Sakura, I need you to hold her down for me just in case if she jerks awake."

With gentle hands, she held the woman's shoulders firmly against the bed, making sure that she was securely down. Giving the signal that she was ready, Ino set her hand on Hinata's head. She was beginning to enter her patient's mind.

Ino glanced at her surroundings. There was nothing, only darkness. Usually a person's mind would contain images, memories and such but shockingly, her mind was blank. It was as if her mind was an empty void. It was perplexing for the doctor.

"What in the world?"

The darkness suddenly oozed like dark ink surrounding her. It was then the sharp smell hit her. The smell of blood. Ino shrieked and forced released her jutsu, bringing her back to reality.

Sakura who had seen Ino gasping with fear snapped her head towards her in alarm.

"Ino! What's wrong?"

She took a moment to recompose herself before replying.

"I need to file in a report to Tsunade-sama. This is a condition which I have never seen before."

Ino whispered, making sure Neji wasn't able to hear.

"How serious is it?" she whispered back.

"It was bad," she finished. Her gesture implied that they should leave it as it is for now. That is, until they are out of Neji's presence.

"I'll give all the details when we discuss with Tsunade-sama."

Sakura nodded in understanding before releasing Hinata from her hold.

Opening the curtain, they could see Neji standing up abruptly to hear the news.

"What's her condition?"

Sakura set a firm gaze on him.

"For now, her condition is not very clear. We need to discuss it first with Tsunade-sama for further clarifications. I'll ask her to take a look at Hinata tomorrow, for now, you should take her home for rest. We'll prescribe her some pills and herbal tea to help her relax. We'll have Tenten give them to you at the reception."

Neji decided to not ask her further questions about his cousin's condition, since they give off the impression that they weren't ready to disclose the information yet.

"In that case, is it alright to schedule an appointment at around the same time?"

Ino gave him an apologetic look.

"We're not sure since Tsunade-sama has been very busy lately. But, we'll give you a call for the appointment."

"Sounds good, thank you."

Neji excused himself with an unconscious Hinata in his arms.

Sakura lifted her hand in protest.

"Uh, Neji! Don't you think you should leave her here until she wakes up?"

He turned around with a thoughtful look.

"I can't do that, if she wakes up, who knows what havoc she'll be capable of doing. She's not mentally stable remember?"

Both Ino and Sakura looked at each other in confusion.

"I guess he's right… we wouldn't want the other patients to be disturbed now do we?"

Sakura couldn't help but agree.

"I guess…"

"If you'll excuse me."

Neji left to the reception where Tenten would be giving him the prescribed medicine.

Both female doctors were standing before the Hokage's desk waiting for their report to be heard.

"Report!" Tsunade demanded.

Ino took the initiave to speak.

"The state of Hyuuga Hinata is exactly as what I had read in one of the forbidden jutsus under the medical records."

"Elaborate."

"Her mind was blank and it acted as if it had activated some kind of automatic defensive mechanism. There was a forbidden jutsu which seals away a person's mind to prevent interrogators or mind reading jutsus from getting any information out of them."

"Are you implying that there's someone in the midst who is taking control over her mind?"

Ino shifted uncomfortably under Tsunade's scrutiny.

"I think so…"

"Sakura!" she snapped.

Sakura immediately straightened her posture mostly due to the surprise.

"Yes, master!" she stated firmly.

"I want you to look into every record of Hyuuga Hinata, especially her missions. See if there are any indications that show she had contact with anyone suspicious outside of Konoha."

Could Tsunade be suspecting that the Hyuuga had committed treachery? Does she think of her as a potential traitor to the village? That's preposterous!

Sakura was about to open her mouth to defend her friend, but decided to clamp her mouth shut the moment she saw the glint in her mentor's amber eyes. She was dead serious. Sakura had no choice but to follow her orders without question. She was after all, the Hokage so she must have had her reasons.

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A/N: Be patient guys! Sasuke will eventually make his spectacular debut either in the next chapter or the chapter after that. Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

DO NOT OWN NARUTO

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

A/N: Wow, Thanks so much for the positive reviews! This is the first time I've ever received this many reviews and I'm much honored. I love you all so much. Just to let you guys know, yes, this is a rather dark fic because I'm not a big fan of fluff hehe. I also want to thank you for your advices; I will gladly accept them as a guideline to help me improve my story. Anyway, here's your anticipated chapter. ENJOY!

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**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 4: Jailed

Sakura searched deep into the records of the specified kunoichi, Hyuuga Hinata. Yet no records had indicated her having connections with anyone suspicious outside of the village. She had even asked her team mates to describe the majority of their mission. They were always stuck together during missions, never once was she out of their sight. Then how could Hinata have had a forbidden jutsu cast upon her which would prevent her from spilling out information? Then the light bulb went off in her head. She knew just the right person to ask. Someone who had constantly been looking after her behavior. Neji.

She rushed to the phone sitting on the dusty table of the old records library and dialed the Hyuuga's manor.

Neji rushed towards the old records building after Sakura's urgent call. She said she needed information from him. She wouldn't tell him why she needed the information because it was classified by the Hokage. But he was willing to help give any information he knew of if it would help Hinata in any way.

Neji was greeted by Sakura who was hidden behind a stack of folders and books.

"You're finally here."

Neji stole a glance at the files she was looking at. With his keen eyes, he managed to catch the name Hyuuga Hinata.

_'So she's looking at her records'_

His train of thought was cut off by the sound of Sakura clearing her throat.

"Neji, you told me that most of her hallucinations involved suicide attempts. Or more like people who were trying to murder her? Can you describe what they were like?"

Neji inwardly shuddered at the memory of Hinata's confession. It was disturbingly eerie.

Then he began.

"Well, she was always saying they had sharingans…"

This was it, this was the vital information she needed to tell Tsunade. Sakura quickened her pace; ignoring the greeting she received from Shizune. The door to the Hokage's room burst open with a grave looking Sakura. Tsunade, who was in a middle of a briefing with a group of shinobis, looked up at the intruder with a raised eyebrow.

"Tsunade-sama, I have a report regarding Hinata."

The Hokage hastily dismissed the team and gave Sakura her full attention.

"I'm listening."

Sakura made a motion towards her desk. There was a demeanor of uncertainty emitting from the young woman. Sakura was contemplating whether she should disclose the newfound information. If Tsunade was to know about it, then it would only confirm where Hinata's loyalty lay. Sensing her dilemma, Tsunade decided to make it easier for her to hand over the information.

"Sakura, what you are doing is for the sake of the village. We are also trying to help Hinata get through this remember? Don't feel guilty about it," she coaxed.

"Whatever the outcome is, I will decide what's best for her and the village."

Sakura was hesitating again. She was a loyal citizen of Konoha; she wouldn't jeopardize the entire village for the sake of one person, even if that said person was her friend. Her thought suddenly trailed to Naruto. He was in the same situation as she was in, except it was with Sasuke. Naruto had decided to give up on his own brother for the sake of the village. He was also assured that not only was the village in peace, but so was Sasuke. Maybe Tsunade would really come up with something that would benefit both the village and Hinata?

She silently prayed for her friend's forgiveness whilst summing up her courage to reveal the information.

_'Hinata, please forgive me.'_

"Neji told me that the people she saw in her hallucinations had sharingans."

The older woman placed her intertwined hands beneath her chin thoughtfully.

"Uchihas?"

Sakrua nodded.

"But that's impossible! From what I know, Hinata had never made any contact with an Uchiha, much less, Uchiha Sasuke. Were there any events in her records indicating that she had any contact with him at all?"

The pinkette shook her head in denial.

"The only time she did have any interaction with him was during our previous retrieval mission. But I don't remember them exchanging any words…"

Emerald eyes widened with realization. Her jaws slightly gaped with a brief gasp which was quickly covered by her gloved hands.

"Oh no…"

Amber eyes narrowed at the change of her body language. This wasn't a good sign.

"What is it?"

Sakura's voice began to tremble with fear.

"Hinata was closest during the explosion at that time. Apparently she was temporarily deaf when I had examined her after our mission. There was a point in time when I had specifically warned everyone to not look in to his eyes when his sharingan was activating something. The warning was given shortly after the explosion, so it's possible that…"

"Hinata hadn't heard because she was deaf," Tsunade finished.

She bit her thumb trailed by a few soft muttering of curses escaping her lips.

"Shizune!"

Her secretary clumsily burst into the room.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?" she saluted.

"Tell the council members that there's an emergency meeting right now!"

Shizune gulped uncertainly.

"But what if they refuse? You know how busy most of them are. To summon them all of a sudden is-"

"Then tell them it's a matter regarding the security of Uchiha Sasuke."

Her secretary immediately clamped her mouth shut in fear. Was something serious about to happen regarding the traitor? But that can't be. He's sealed for good inside a scroll, that no one can open, which was guarded by ANBU. Staring at her mentor disbelievingly, she obeyed nevertheless.

"Y-yes, right away!"

"Make sure Naruto is present as well. As the future Hokage he needs to know about this."

Aftere she was dismissed, Tsunade stole a worried glance over her troubled student.

She sighed at her student. Getting up from her chair, she strolled next to the pinkette, patting her shoulder.

"Don't worry Sakura, everything will be alright."

_'That's right! Everything will be alright. She's going to help Hinata and the village. I should have more faith in her.'_ The pinkette told herself. She felt bad, really bad, but it was for the best right?

However, unbeknownst to her that the ones who make the ultimate decision were the village elders. In the end, they would have the ultimate say, not Tsunade.

The council room was buzzing with curious chattering of the council members. They were confused for the sudden call for an emergency meeting. Among the members there were the leaders of the major influential clans within the village who include the Yamanaka, Nara, Akamichi, Aburame, Inuzuka and Hyuuga. The head council consists of the village elders, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado. Both whom were childhood friends of the, now deceased, Third Hokage.

As usual, Tsunade was running late for the meeting which was causing many of them to test their patience. Alas, the Fifth Hokage strode inside with Naruto in tow, occupying her vacant seat at the end of the large table, where she faced two of the elders on the other end. Shizune was standing next to her with a clip board, ready to record everything in her memo. An extra seat was placed by an ANBU next to Tsunade's for the blond to sit.

The restless murmurs echoing within the dim room died down.

"I see that you have finally arrived, Princess Tsunade. Seeing that you have brought Naruto-kun here must mean that this meeting is a big issue. Well then, shall we begin?" Koharu looked at each member for any objections. Seeing none, she nodded towards Homura.

"In that case, we shall commence this emergency Konoha council meeting."

His booming aged voice echoed in the midst.

Tsunade leaned slightly forward with her hands under her chin. Her eyes were grim.

"First of all, I would like to apologize for suddenly calling this meeting. I understand that you are all busy, but this is a crucial meeting which will decide the fate of Uchiha Sasuke and Konoha."

The room once again buzzed with amusement and confusion.

"What is the meaning of this? Uchiha Sasuke has been permanently sealed inside a scroll, which cannot be unlocked, guarded by ANBU. What threat can that caged bird be to us now?"

Homura's words were filled with disbelief. Everyone in the room nodded in agreement, waiting for the Hokage to explain the predicament.

Her next words sent the entire room into turmoil, especially Hiashi.

"Apparently, Hyuuga Hinata had made some sort of contact with Uchiha Sasuke before he was sealed away. Hiashi, the reason for your daughter's unstable mentality is because she's under a jutsu casted by Uchiha Sasuke."

Hiashi furiously shot up from his seat.

"How could you accuse of my daughter-"

"All evidence I have gathered leads to this conclusion. If you would like, I can ask Shizune to produce them after the meeting."

The Hyuuga head clenched his fist before reoccupying his seat. He had to keep his cool in this meeting. Naruto on the other hand, wasn't as surprised. He had been briefed of the situation before the meeting. He had been angry and upset, but for the sake of putting up a good impression as the future Hokage, he had to act reasonably. All he needed to hear now was the decision of the council.

"Are you saying that she's a traitor?" Koharu asked.

"I haven't gathered that much information yet. What I do know is that an automatic self defense mechanism has been implanted into her mind by that man, therefore annihilating the possibility of extracting information from her. We don't know what she's thinking. She could either be held hostage by that man or she could be collaborating with him."

Hiashi couldn't sit still while his daughter was being accused of treachery.

"That's impossible! My daughter would never do such a thing. She's a loyal kunoichi!"

"Hiashi, calm down or I would have to force you to leave this meeting until you have yourself recollected," Koharu warned.

Inuzuka Tsume raised her hand.

"I have a say as well."

Hiashi looked at her in hopes that she would defend his daughter.

"We all know that Hyuuga Hinata is an honest girl. Her records are all clean, so how could you draw the conclusion that she has committed treachery?"

The Aburame who had kept silent throughout the entire meeting agreed with a nod.

"It doesn't make sense." His voice rumbled.

Everyone was surprised when the least expected to speak in this matter spoke up next.

"Granny had no choice. She had to take account all the possibilities, whether they may sound impossible or not. She's just taking precautions to make sure that the village is safe."

Needless to say that the members were impressed by his speech. Looks like the boy had potential after all.

Homura cleared his throat.

"Naruto-kun is right."

"But-"

"Enough! It is obvious that the Uchiha now has a mean to communicate outside. Only he knows the seal to open the scroll. The next thing we know, he may be using Hiashi's daughter to open the scroll for him. When that happens, hell will break lose. It is time we decide what to do with Hyuuga Hinata!"

Shikaku Nara, being the genius he was had already predicted the outcome of this meeting. It wasn't going to turn out very good. The most likely action they would take was to strip her off her rank as shinobi, lock her up and seal away all her senses, especially her byakugan. They were already treating her like a traitor even if she wasn't.

Homura glanced at his partner.

"She is now a potential threat, so it is inevitable that she had to be kept locked up with under constant surveillance of ANBU. Koharu, what do you suggest?"

"I completely agree with you. Although, there are a few more things I would like to add. All her senses would be sealed, especially her byakugan for precaution. This way, it will be harder for him to use her; we want her to be as useless to him as possible. Who knows when the Uchiha would possess her to do the unthinkable?"

Inoichi was completely against the idea.

"That's too harsh! That's just as bad as sending her to a death sentence. She'll never be a shinobi ever again."

"She's still so young…" Akamichi added.

"It is better to prevent what we can before we regret it."

Homura defended.

"What do you think, Princess Tsunade? Naruto-kun? Is it worth it to sacrifice the village for only the life of one girl?"

This was like Sasuke's trial all over again. It was making Naruto sick to the stomach. He loved this village but his friends were a different matter.

"As the future Hokage, you should decide for what's best for this village. The girl's sacrifice will not be in vain."

The elders were cunning foxes. They know how to play with words to turn any situation into their favor. Naruto's fists trembled. Was he going to sacrifice another friend?

_'I can't be selfish! I have to do this…'_

"Naruto is still young; you shouldn't pressurize him like this. He has dealt enough with Sasuke so don't add more burdens on him!" Tsunade interrupted.

"Well then, I suggest he will have to prepare for a lot of demanding pressures when he becomes the Hokage. It won't be long until he takes the succession, Princess Tsunade," Koharu bit back.

"Well?" Aged eyes bore into his young ones.

Tsunade felt the urge to protect the youngester from these vultures.

"Naruto, you can leave this room if you want. I'll deal with the rest-"

"No, the future of this village is more important. Hinata's sentence has been decided."

His voice was cracking. He was trying his best to stay strong; if he wanted to be Hokage, he had to be ready to sacrifice everything for the sake of the village. He can't be selfish; he had to be like his father who would even sacrifice his own son.

Koharu and Homura had look of victory on their faces. Before the meeting was officially dismissed, Hiashi had walked out of the room without looking back. His usual prideful figure was now slightly hunched. His shoulders slumped as if he had no more energy. Everyone felt sympathy towards the man and the fate of his daughter.

Sakura rushed over to Naruto's apartment. She knew that the outcome of the meeting wouldn't produce any good news. He needed her and she knew it, whether he asked she or not she's going to him. She didn't bother knocking on his door because she knew he'd be too stubborn to open it. Without a moment to waste she kicked his door down.

"Naruto!"

She walked into his room only to see him lying on his bed, facing the wall. She could hear his soft sniffles and shuddering back. Naruto was crying. Words were useless now, they wouldn't mean anything. What this man needed now was to know that there was someone to be there for him. She crept onto his bed, embracing him from behind while his sobs only grew.

It was another precious friend lost.

Hinata was laying emotionless on her futon. Her mind was numb from all the nightmarish images. When will they end? She was starting to deteriorate mentally. She could hear the thundering footsteps of her father coming towards her room. Her door slid open gently. She didn't bother turning to see him. He would probably scold her again. Her eyes widened when he did the most unexpected thing. He kneeled next to her, patting her head gently. When was the last time he had patted her head so affectionately? When her mother was still alive? She felt his hand jerk away at the sound of more footsteps running through the corridor. Panicked screams and weapons clashing rang loudly. Hinata shot up from her bed looking terrified. Hiashi tensed.

A new guest escorted by a guilty looking Neji entered the room.

"Koharu-sama what is the meaning of this?" Hiashi exclaimed.

Neji took the opportunity to apologize in advance. A few more ANBU showed up, about five of them, by the door.

"Hyuuga Hinata will have her judgment passed onto her. If you resist, you and your entire clan will be under house arrest."

"This was not discussed in our meeting. You didn't specify the time of her penalty yet!"

Koharu looked at him with cold calculating eyes.

"It was your own fault to have left before I dismissed the meeting. If you hadn't left, then you probably would have known."

He glared daggers at Neji.

"Forgive me, Uncle. My loyalties to the village lay first priority; it is the conduct of the ANBU."

Hiashi couldn't blame the young man. He was doing what he had to do. An ANBU's job was to serve the village through the shadows, just like Itachi.

"Arrest that girl this instant," Koharu ordered curtly.

Hiashi could only stand still as the ANBU walked passed him.

"W-what's going on father? Neji-nii san?" Hinata was panicking.

She immediately attacked the first ANBU who touched her. Eventually, every one of them was restraining her. She kicked, screamed, and begged for her father and cousin to do something. She felt betrayed when none of them made motion. They could only look at her with pain filled eyes.

"Forgive me, my daughter…"

"It's better if you do _that _now so she can't struggle," the elder suggested.

Five of them performed five different seals to seal away her five senses. Hinata felt her body wobble like jelly. Everything around her went pitch black as if the lights had been switched off. Everything was dead silent. The harsh hands that were on her a few moments ago vanished.

_'What happened?'_

Once her struggles died down, the restraining ANBU released her. One of them made a motion to check if all the seals were successful. He nodded at Koharu for confirmation.

"We have successfully sealed all of her senses. I put an extra stronger seal on her eyes though for her byakugan ma'am."

"A job well done. Now please bring her to the chambers; make sure she has the tightest security there is. No visitors are allowed. If you see anything suspicious, report to me immediately."

Koharu turned around to exit. The ANBU had Hinata's limb constrained with chains and carried her out.

"I thank you for your cooperation, Neji-kun and Hiashi. Your deed will not be forgotten."

That was the last time anyone had seen Hinata. None of them were allowed to know how she was nor were they allowed to hear any reports about her condition. To them, she was just as good as dead. Hyuuga Hinata's existence has been wiped away from Konoha, just like Uchiha Sasuke.

Away she was taken to her chamber where she would be sealed away as well.

She was thrown into her chamber deep inside the forbidden forest. It was scarcely used, making the musty damp air uncomfortable for its inhabitants. It was moldy in there too, yet no one would want to waste their time and effort making the place for criminals a comfortable home to live in. They didn't deserve such luxury. However, none of it affected Hinata, she was nothing but a vegetable now. She couldn't speak, hear, see, taste, move nor feel. To her, it was like floating in darkness. The worst thing was that when the horrible nightmares began, there was no one to stop it. The images would keep replaying over and over like a loop. Eventually, she had given up her will to fight the images. She felt as if she had died then revived again only to be killed again by the Uchihas. Where was everyone when she needed them? Why was she all alone in this darkness? Hinata wasn't aware that everyone thought nothing more of her than dead.

* * *

A/N: I was thinking of including Sasuke in this chapter BUT… I decided to put him in the next (for climax purposes hehe)! Please look forward to the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

* * *

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 5: Forbidden Contract

How long had she been in this state; in this endless darkness? She couldn't tell anymore. She had lost her sense of time. Actually, she had lost all of her senses. She still hadn't understood her predicament. Was she dead or alive? Nothing made sense for her anymore.

Hinata had been imprisoned for almost a month now. No one knew what she was doing or what was going to happen to her in her prison since no one was allowed to make any contact with her. She had been in a 'living' dead state. Her chamber was small, moldy and barren with only iron barred door to be considered as the only 'furniture'. She grew thinner by the day. She never ate; no matter how many times food was sent to her. She never felt hungry. _Couldn't _feel hungry. She was only left in her little prison to rot and die.

One of the ANBU wearing a cat mast glanced at her partner, the rabbit.

"She's still not eating?"

"Idiot! How can she eat in this state? She can't even feel anything, much less do anything! Just leave her to die; it'll make things a lot more easy."

"Poor thing, she'll probably won't even realize it if she did die."

Rabbit and Cat were standing on either side of the 'cage' with highly trained discipline. Any ordinary shinobi wouldn't be able to withstand on guard duty for twenty four hours with only a brief break to eat. Even if they had a break to eat, they would still need to eat in their post. Of course, they would change shifts every two days.

"By the way, I heard they increased the number of guards for that cursed scroll," Cat stated.

"Yeah, the council is getting rather rowdy lately."

The two continued to chat about anything and nothing to pass time. Besides, even if they do disclose any information, it wasn't like the girl could hear them or anything. So what was the harm?

Hinata was getting tired of everything, she just wanted to die. Why can't this torture end? She could feel herself die over a hundred times in different scenarios. This 'dream' was no different. This time she was being stabbed to death by an Uchiha woman. Mustering up her remaining energy, she begged the woman to stop.

"S-stop…please. I can't take it anymore. If you want to kill me for good then do it. I don't want this anymore… just please stop it! I'll do anything… anything!"

The multiple stabbing stopped and the searing pain over her body ceased as well. Was this one of their sick games? They'll heal her then torture her again? She waited for the woman to inflict more torture, but nothing came. She just stared at her.

"Anything?"

It wasn't a woman's voice, but rather a man's coming out of her pale lips.

"Yes, anything! You have my word- here; take my blood as a sign of my oath! If you want just take my body and let me die already…"

The woman loosened her grip on Hinata. The knife she was holding a moment ago had vanished.

She smirked.

"Those were the words I've wanted to hear for a very long time."

Then she continued.

"What if I don't want to end your life? What if I want your service? In exchange, I'll let you live a free life. You won't have to deal with this curse anymore."

Hinata bit her lip.

"If this service you ask for requires betraying the village, then I won't!"

The woman evaporated into nothingness. A familiar sick maddening laugh brushed against her ear. It was chillingly familiar.

"You don't know what Konoha has done to you have you?"

"W-what do you mean?"

"You are nothing but a sacrificial piece for those lowlife scums!"

She winced at his loud voice.

"They think you were going crazy because of the illusion at first. But clever Sakura had it figured out. That's right, the moment they had found out I was using you, and they had immediately branded you as a traitor."

"Who are you?"

Her surroundings were all black, so she was only able to hear his chilling voice. Her body suddenly felt cold and bare. She felt a large cold hand covering her eyes closed. Yet strangely, she couldn't move. She could feel his other hand trailing down from her cheek to her chin, stroking gently. She could feel something rough slithering over her nude body. This 'something' was hissing as it coiled itself around her.

The man in question decided to ignore her question.

"I see that Manda has taken a liking towards you."

She could feel his warm breath tickle her ear. She hated herself for feeling elated with the fact that she could finally have human contact after so long! It had been too long since she had felt contact with another human's warmth. Her lack of contact with others had made her into a desperate puppy who craved for affection.

This man knew her every thought and desire. He was after all, in her mind. It was his advantage to be able to exploit her weaknesses as well as use her in any way he wants. It was very enjoyable for the man to tease her like this.

His moist tongue tingling over her earlobe sent shivers down her spine. He was teasing her.

"Would you like to hear the entire story? I've been watching you know."

He didn't care whether she replied or not so he started talking anyway.

"Instead of wasting my breath, how about I show it to you instead?"

He grasped her head forcefully, making her slightly whimper.

Images from Sakura searching through her files to the day of the council meeting flashed before her eyes.

"Stop it!"

"It hurts doesn't it? To know that your very own village, even your family, has betrayed you."

"Enough! I don't want to know anymore!"

Then, his voice lowered into a soft whisper.

"They did the same thing to my brother. They used him like a pawn. I think you know the story, but the elders had already covered it up with their petty excuses saying that it was for the good of the village. They said it was a meaningful sacrifice to protect the future of Konoha. But that's just lies to mask their greed. In the end, they only want more power and used their own people's sacrifices as stepping stones. They eliminate any possible threats, even if they are minute."

His breathing went shallow due to his effort to restrain his anger.

Hinata was at loss of words. The revelation had hurt her more than the mental tortures she have had. This new feeling that was slowly growing in her heart was suffocating. She could feel it; _hate._ She knew this man who had ruined her life, it was Sasuke.

"They had branded you as a traitor before you could even have a chance to explain."

"That's because it's your fault! If you hadn't-"

"Well, if I never did what I did, would you ever know how the dark side of Konoha? Do you seriously want a village to be run by tyrants who would treat their shinobis like trash? Anyway, you're still alive right now, but just barely. Even if they said they would eventually release you if they find a way to break the jutsu, they _won't_. Because there's no way to break it unless they kill the user. It's already been described in the archive of forbidden scrolls. It's painfully obvious that the council knows about it already. In other words, if they want the jutsu to be broken, they would have to release me in order to kill me. I doubt they would actually go with the idea of releasing me. Trust me, they would do anything to keep me tightly locked up in that hell hole. The only option left is to let you die. Why else would they take away all your senses?"

His cool hands released her from his hold. Pale hands encircled themselves around her chest and stomach. The feeling of her soft back against his hard chest made her heart skip a beat.

"I… thought you were at peace in that scroll?"

He gave an indignant snort.

"Peace? That's just probably another bullshit they fed to that idiot just to ease him. There was nothing but constant torture in there. It was nothing but loneliness. The scene of my clan's massacre and Itachi's death kept replaying itself. They should have decided to kill me, but Naruto thought I would be happier alive. The council obviously wouldn't want to let me live or die without punishment. They invented the scroll so that I could live in torture for all eternity. Those sadistic bastards."

Large swelled tears rolled down her eyes. How could the village she loved do such a thing to their people?

"S-Sasuke-kun, if I help you, what will happen to me? What will you do?"

He shifted into a more comfortable position. He rested his head at the top her head, inhaling the scent of her soft silky hair.

"You'll be a traitor with a death penalty. As for me, I won't do anything to harm the village. I'll just run away."

Cold sweat broke through her brow. He was planning on using her then dumps her like a trash? He was no better than the council!

"You're a hypocrite," she hissed.

"No I'm not. I never said I was going to leave you behind with the pack of wolves."

"But that's what you were implying," she retorted.

"If you help me, I'll give you what you want in return."

She couldn't see his expression, but she could tell he was smirking.

"How do you know what I want? I'll be a wanted criminal labeled as a missing nin. If I said I want to live a life where none of this had ever happened, can you grant my wish?"

Pale hands grabbed one of her wrists. His nails slowly dug into her soft skin, drawing blood.

"Of course I can. I'm an Uchiha; I can do _anything._"

She couldn't believe how full he was of himself! Was this man just teasing her? She had enough of his mind games. Both relief and disappointment overcame her when he finally removed his body from hers.

"To show you I'm serious, let's make a blood pact."

He walked in front of her, which made her feel self conscious over her current state. Ignoring her sense of discomfort, he summoned his snake.

"_Manda."_

It uncoiled itself from her body. She was able to move freely again. The snake slithered to its owner, then transformed into a scroll within a puff of smoke. Manda will be the living proof of the contract.

"Sign it," he urged.

She was too mentally drained right now. Too many things had been happening to her and she just doesn't care anymore. She hadn't given a second thought or bother to read the contract before signing it. Her mind was numb again. She just wanted this whole thing to be over with. The thought that she'd finally be out of this nightmare was sorely tempting. If she were to help him, she'd be free from all of this. Hinata let the blood from her fresh wound drip onto the scroll. The deal was made.

Pain surged throughout her frail body. Every twitch of her muscle sent jostling electricity. She bit back a yelp to not alarm her guards. They were still talking or arguing about something to not notice her recovery. It was better if she still played 'dead' for a while longer. The air was humid making her skin feel uncomfortably sticky. She took a moment to feel her surrounds with her newfound senses. It felt rejuvenating.

"Hinata, I'm borrowing your body for a bit."

Before she could protest, her body began moving entirely by itself.

_'Sasuke, what are you doing?'_

'_Trying to get you out so you can free me.'_

Cat and Rabbit stopped talking as they sensed something changed in the atmosphere. Both turned to see their captive to be missing from her chamber.

"Shit!" Cat cursed.

Rabbit fumbled over his keys to get the door open. Both got in the prison to inspect. By the time they had realized that the captive was hidden along the ceiling, it was too late. Both ANBU guards lay dead in the cell. Hinata looted their weapons along with Cat's attire quickly before leaving the corpses. She was lucky that there happened to be a female ANBU. She tied her hair up in an attempt to have the same hairstyle as Cat's. The disguise should do, for now.

Hinata dashed through the thickets of the forest towards the underground headquarters of ANBU. That was where Sasuke was being held. It was like a prey that had willingly entered a lion's den. No matter how much she tried to stop herself, Hinata couldn't. Sasuke would be the death of her, literally. Having good chakra control, she was able to hide her presence very well. Neji had taught her the art of hiding one's chakra since it was crucial for an ANBU. She felt bad that she was using his teaching for a bad cause. She shouldn't feel guilty anyway since Konoha had already labeled her as a traitor. What difference would it make if she did another bad deed or two? Her feet led her through a loophole which held less ANBU roaming about. She walked among the crowd of ANBU. So far, no one had recognized her yet, which was good. She got as far as the secret door which leads deeper underground where Sasuke's scroll was kept. She counted the number of guards there were. There seemed to be about six of them.

_'That many?'_

_'They're just paranoid.'_

She froze when she noticed a familiar mask. _Neji._

"Hey Cat, you're supposed to be on guard duty with that Hyuuga girl. What are you doing here?"

She tried to stay calm but her heart won't stop jumping from panic.

"Cat, did you lose a lot of weight?" one of them asked.

With swift precise strikes of her palm and sword, she had managed to kill five of them in a matter of seconds. Save one, Neji.

"Hinata-sama…"

Neji was stunned. If his cousin was here then does that mean Sasuke had successfully manipulated her? He can't let her get to the scroll no matter what. His heart fluttered with happiness that the thought that his dear cousin was still alive. But a part of him nagged him to complete his duty. Hinata took advantage of his dilemma to knock him out. His moves were slow and hesitant, allowing her to finish the job faster, knocking him out. She can kill anyone except her fellow clansmen.

The door, now clear of the guards, was visibly covered in seals. These types of special seals could only be taken off with different chakra waves. It was like a code, except it was a code which can be unlocked based on different combinations of how much chakra you should emit. One must have excellent chakra control to do this. She was grateful that she was s Hyuuga. Unlocking the seals on the door was as easy as lock picking for the kunoichi. The sound of the iron door clicked open.

The heavy large door produced a loud groaning sound as she pushed it open. Sitting on a velvet cushion was the scroll. Crouching in front of the scroll, she waited for further instructions.

'_I want you to perform the hand seals that I'll recite got it?'_

Hinata nodded.

He recited a series of hand seals which she hastily performed in fear that they will be discovered soon. Her hands were starting to ache as she was working on the fiftieth seal. Back up were coming and if she doesn't finish this quick, she'd be discovered. She forced her hands to work faster, ignoring the numbness about to take place. She sighed in relief when she finished the last seal, which was the one hundredth one.

The black scroll shredded into oblivion with Sasuke materializing in front of her. Red sharingan eyes stared back at her lavender ones. Those eyes were haunted her like the ones from her visions.

Sasuke stood mere inches away from his savior.

"I've been waiting for you. I think it's time I return your favor."

Again, he held her gaze as his sharingan went into work.

_'You will leave behind everything and forget your life in Konoha.'_

In an instant, she had collapsed in his arms. He had kept his promise; Hinata would be able to start her life anew. She will forget everything in this life.

He settled her down gently against the wall, silently promising her that he would fetch her once he was done with his business. Walking outside the chamber, he was faced with a flood of ANBU preparing to launch at him. The headquarters would soon be filled with a blood bath which he will enjoy every second of it. Once he was done, he'd be on his way to destroy this damn village; starting with the assassination of the elders.

Did Hinata seriously believe that he would let Konoha go unscathed? He scoffed at the thought. Konoha would receive the judgment it deserves. The avenger would bring hell upon the village. He merely lied to her so she would help him. He knew that if she were to find out about his real agenda, she would refuse to set him free.

Sasuke emerged out of the headquarters covered with the ANBUs' blood as a symbol of trophy. The loud cries of the shinobis deep underground went unheard of from above during the battle. He took a whiff of fresh air before hunting for his two preys.

His assassination was quick and efficient. He didn't bother wasting his time to give them a slow painful death. If he tortured them that would only mean that he was stooping down to their level. They were so pathetically harmless in their sleep. They were old people who had all the power they ever wanted. It seems that they were so smitten with it that they think that any danger coming for them would be kept at bay. They had taken their security for granted. Too bad their guards were easily taken down.

Of course, before he finished the old woman off, he decided to make use of her one last time.

"Where the hell did you keep the Uchiha estate's liquidated assets?"

He was strangling the woman's throat.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about!"

His grip tightened.

"You very well damn know what I'm talking about. Don't think that I don't know that you had the entire estate property demolished to be sold for your dirty money!"

Koharu's eyes widened. That was supposed to be classified information.

Realizing that he won't get any answers from the persistent woman, he decided to end her pitiful life. He rummaged through her room and her entire house; he had practically flipped the entire house upside down. Yet, there was nothing. It was time he moved on his next victim

The window to Homura's window creaked open. A tall shadow loomed into the room through the white curtains. Hovering over the sleeping figure, his blade touched the man's throat dangerously.

Wrinkled eyes shot open.

"You-"

He was cut off when the sharp feel of steel cut deep into his skin.

"Tell me where the liquidated assets from the Uchiha estate are."

This old man wouldn't budge either. So he wants to play it this way huh? Fine then, he'll just have to look for it himself. Instantly, blood spurt out of the deep wound from his sliced jugular, splashing onto the assassin's face. Again, he rummaged throughout the room. His guards hadn't realized his presence yet. Good.

Then, under the man's bed was a secret compartment leading to a small safe box beneath the floor board. Lifting it up gently, he groped through the small opening. He felt something. It was a small object in the shape of a box. He grabbed it hastily and opened it.

Here it was the deed of his family estate. It was a sealed certificate indicating that everything had been liquidated. With this, he could have enough money to rebuild the entire estate if he wanted to. This would take him one step closer to reviving his clan. He wasn't' stealing, he was merely taking back what was stolen from what was rightfully his. Folding the piece of paper, he summoned Manda to keep it in storage.

The peaceful village was still asleep under the full moon. It was just like the night when the massacre happened. This time, it wouldn't be the massacre of his clan, but the village. Summoning his Susanoo, he willed it to destroy the streets at buildings. Houses were torn away from the earth, torn into shreds. After he was satisfied, he used his amaterasu to burn down the entire village. The fire of hate would stop at nothing until everything had completely been burned. Screams of terror ripped throughout the village within the chaos. He marveled it all. Konoha would be wiped off from the map; he'd make sure of that.

The thought of the village living in peace while he suffered was unbearable. The village had always looked at his clan with scorn, believing every bullshit the elders fed them. They didn't even know the entire story, yet they blindly believed them. He felt pity for Naruto; they treated him the same way before. Now, he's just one of Konoha's dogs to use as for as military power. So who are they to just suddenly change and turn all wishy washy, suddenly acting like they had always loved Naruto from the very beginning? It aggravated him.

Angry red eyes glared at the catastrophic scene with satisfaction. He had succeeded in delivering his justice.

Unfortunately for him, he couldn't stay to enjoy wreaking havoc much longer. The blond would show up any time soon. He didn't feel like having a sentimental reunion with the idiot. In fact, he never even wanted to see him again. The avenger had completed his lifelong goal. Now his clan would finally be able to rest in peace. It was time for him to leave his taunting past behind along with the village. The now former avenger disappeared into the black flames to fetch his prize, Hyuuga Hinata.

Everything was going according to his calculations, even Hinata's imprisonment. With her broken spirit and betrayal, it was easier for him to use her.

Little did Hinata know that the contract she signed was a binding oath in which she would forever be bound to Uchiha Sasuke. She wasn't going to know she was tricked anyway since he had erased all of her memories. When she wakes up from her peaceful slumber, Hinata would be living in a completely new life as Uchiha Hinata. They would both start a new life together, leaving behind all the haunting memories.

* * *

A/N: Keep anticipating for the next chapter. Next chap will be a real treat for you guys since it'll be almost 2x longer than my usual chapters. HOT ROMANCE ALERT!


	6. Chapter 6

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

* * *

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 6: A New Life

Naruto stared from a far away hill, watching his beloved home being engulfed in black flames. He felt numb, he had already lost so much, and now…

Tears began to well up in his eyes as reality hit him. His numbed mind was beginning to register the situation. Slowly, he sunk on his knees upon the moist grass. He could hear children and adults wailing. Some were lucky enough to be able to evacuate safely, but the rest were burned away along with their home. Those who were trapped in the village were mostly common villagers, not shinobis. Only shinobis would be able to get out unscathed. Of course, most did their best to save as many, but alas, it wasn't possible to save every citizen from the black flames of hell.

Naruto felt his heart clench when he heard his people crying for their deceased loved ones. It was unfortunate that some very young ones had become to orphans all of a sudden. The villagers were devastated.

"What's going to happen to us?"

"We don't have anywhere else to go!"

"Tsunade-sama, please help us!"

"It must be that damn Uchiha and Hyuuga girl!"

Hiashi slightly flinched at an ANBU's accusation. The rest of the Hyuuga clan looked down in shame.

Neji had come limping towards the crowd with cuts. He was lucky he had woken up just in time to be able to escape the disaster. The moment the Hokage had spotted him, she had immediately demanded some answers.

"Tell me, is this all Uchiha Sasuke's doing?"

"My deepest apologies, Tsunade-sama. I had failed you and the village."

"You did not answer my question! Did or Did not Uchiha Sasuke destroy our village along with our beloved people?"

Neji couldn't look at her. He was too ashamed; if only he hadn't shown hesitance towards Hinata, he could have had stopped her. He bowed low on his knees.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama…"

"Can I safely say that Hyuuga Hinata was behind all this as well? Was she the one who released him?"

"Yes… I-"

"You hesitated and as a result, you have jeopardized the village! Look around you; your selfishness is what led everyone into this predicament!"

The villagers were in an uproar, demanding something more than an apology. They were mad, the Hokage no less. She was tempted to banish this man, until a hand rested upon her shoulder.

"Granny, don't you think he's suffering enough already? Can't you see how much guilt he's shouldering right now? You're acting like it's his entire fault; you're just trying to find excuses to throw your meaningless tantrums!"

"It's not his fault. Besides, with that bastard controlling Hinata to be a killing machine, did you honestly think that Neji would be able to go up against her anyway? It's not his fault; the opponent was already out of his league."

Neji had never felt so indebted for the blonde before. If he was given a second chance, he would be a loyal ANBU guard of his, who would even gladly die for him.

"Even if I wish to banish him, I can't anyway," she mumbled.

Naruto looked at her in puzzlement.

"What do you mean?"

Cold eyes bored into his cerulean ones with anger.

"I'm no longer a Hokage, and neither are you ever going to be one. Konoha is finished."

"How could you say that-"

"Look at the situation we're in! We are already swimming in a lot of debt rebuilding our village from Pein's invasion and the war. We haven't even paid back the other countries yet! To have our village rebuilt again is impossible; where would we find our source of money?"

Naruto's gaze fell. Everything he had fought for; his dream, his village, and future had been stripped away. What was he left of now?

"Shizune! Write an urgent letter to the Kazekage entailing our current predicament. Tell him, the former villagers of Konoha would be seeking refuge in Suna."

The young man's fists clenched tightly. This was probably for the best; it was smarter to turn to an ally for help. In this case, they would be handing over their citizenship to Suna.

He turned to leave. To him, it was pointless to stay with people who had lost all hope; he would just be dragged down by them.

"Where do you think you're going, young man?" she barked.

"I'm a shinobi of Konoha. If you all decide to give up your loyalty to some other country, then go ahead. I'm not abandoning my heritage."

"Uzumaki Naruto, if you leave now I will immediately label you as a nuke nin!" Tsunade threatened.

Laughter of irony left his lips.

"You can't label me as a nuke nin. What have I ever done to betray Konoha? It's you people who have betrayed it. Besides, the village doesn't even exist anymore."

Sakura, who was hidden within the uproar of crowd, reached out for him. She ran towards him, giving him a desperate hug.

"Naruto, you can't do this… don't leave me!" she wailed.

Gently, he plucked her arms away from his neck. He held her hands tenderly towards his heart.

"I'm sorry, I have to. I need to get Sasuke for this…"

"It's pointless! What are you going to do when you see him? Kill him? That won't bring back what we've lost! You were supposed to break this cycle of hatred…you're just being a hypocrite."

Sakura's blood was boiling with anger. This man was not the Naruto she learned to love.

"I…can't Sakura I'm sorry. I have to stop him this time, for good. I know it won't bring back the dead, but…but…"

"Naruto!"

"I can't I'm sorry alright."

He spun around, only to have her hold on to his jumper in a death grip. Naruto bit his dry bottom lip, it was difficult for him.

"Don't do it, you'll regret it."

"I don't care. I can't let him do as he pleases anymore."

"Is he more important than me?" she croaked.

"…He's my brother…"

Sakura's grip shook with the struggle to hold on to him for dear life, but she knew that once Naruto made up his mind, nothing would be able to change it. Not even her.

Naruto was slowly breaking inside as well. If sealing Sasuke away hadn't done any good, then he just had to finish him off instead. Maybe he should have had done that before, but he was too stubborn. He didn't want to drag Sakura into anymore of his problems. She had her life and career ahead of her, it was wrong for him to take it all away from her. The burden he had to carry shouldn't be shared; it would only drag her down with him.

He didn't know what he could do with his life anymore. The only goal he could think of now was to seek Sasuke once again. It was better if he breaks things clean and clear for Sakura's and his own sake. A part of his soul shattered into pieces. He was finally going to marry the girl he had been chasing for nearly his entire life. But no, he couldn't take her away from the life she could have had been happier with. She deserves happiness, even if it was to be with another man. That was just how much he loved her.

"Is there really nothing I could do to make you stay?" she whispered.

There was only silence; even the crowd had fallen quiet at the heart breaking scene.

"I loved you and I still do."

"I know."

"Then, why?"

"I'm sorry Sakura, but it seems that I'm really not ready to give you my entire heart yet. What we had, I guess it was just a premature love."

"I-"

"Sai," he cut her off.

The blonde nodded towards his friend, who stood in front of the crowd.

"Take care of her will ya?"

Sai didn't know what to do. But he knew that this was what Naruto wanted. The least he could do for his friend was to accept his last request.

He nodded in understanding. The ANBU walked towards the pinkette, carefully brushing her hands off his friend's jumper. Sai was immediately shoved away.

"I'll never forgive you!"

Those were her last words to her beloved before she shoved her way back into the crowd.

Sai turned to look at his friend one last time.

"I'm counting on you, Sai."

"I'll take care of her, I promise. You better take care of yourself too."

He flashed one last smile to the stone faced man. Then, he turned towards the former Hokage, giving her a sincere bow, before walking off into the thicket of trees.

The dark shade of the sky slowly turned into shades violet and orange. The stars ceased to twinkle, indicating that dawn was breaking. It was another new day with a new life for everyone.

Sasuke was carrying his new wife like a potato sack slung over his shoulder. A sleeping genjutsu had been conveniently casted on her. He would have plenty of time to find a temporary lodge as well as cooking up an alibi or some cover up background story for Hinata before setting off to another journey. That is, once her mind was in top shape.

Giant branches were used for a jumping platform, as he glided through the thick forest. The six hour journey was beginning to take its toll on him. He would need to get out of Fire Country as fast as possible while covering his tracks.

It was essential to find a country who had never heard of his existence; preferably a neutral, rural one. Then, an idea struck his mind.

_'Bird Country!'_

Bird country was just next to Konoha, making it day trip without any rest. It was the only option he had left. It would be a hassle to travel to other countries with an unconscious woman. Having a conscious Hinata would be a lot easier to travel with.

It wouldn't take long for the rest of the Fire Country to receive news that the rogue ninja was roaming free once again. Sooner or later, there would be an international search party. Many countries would be hot on his heels.

Luckily, Bird Country was a neutral land. To them, whoever entered or left the country hadn't mattered at all. It was a favourite base area for nuke nins. Since it was a poor country, it was easier for rogue ninjas to disguise themselves as poor farmers. Moreover, the country had an unwritten conduct; they were respectful to their fellow inhabitants. Therefore, whatever secret information they know about will remain tight lipped. In other words, whatever happens in the country, will stay in the country.

They were a neutral territory, not wanting any disputes after all. All they had to do was turn a blind eye on any missing ninjas or criminals seeking refuge within the country. Everyone would be minding their own business.

No other country was allowed set foot into their territory nor were they allowed to involve in any political matters. This was a law known throughout the shinobi world, which had been formed six years ago by the union.

The money he looted from the deceased elders was enough to last them for few months. But even so, they would need to keep a low profile as well as earn money.

_'Maybe a medicine seller?'_

The idea wasn't so bad, in fact, he rather liked it. Besides, after being in Hinata's head for so long, he had learned a lot about her. He knows just about every fibre to her being; her history, likes and dislikes, hobbies, etc.

If his memory was correct, the woman rather enjoyed making herbal medicine, which would be very useful for their new business. The Uchiha Estate deed had been safely kept by Manda. At least, in the future, he would have more than enough to rebuild the estate. The deed was priceless; he could go the national bank and demand them to give him his sum of money. For now, he had to earn his own sum; he promised that he wouldn't touch the deed, not until he was ready to rebuild the clan. Even with his current status, the bank couldn't deny him since the certificate had been 'approved' by the council's seal. Moreover, it would be stupid for him to get caught just because he was trying to get money. He had to find another way to get the money without ever needing to step foot inside of Fire country.

Deciding to go for Bird Country, he steered towards the east. It would take at least another day to get there. His shoulders were starting to ache so he shifted Hinata for a more comfortable position; his back.

It was mid day by the time Sasuke had reached his destination. No one bothered to spare a glance at the new comer since it was common sight amongst the people. It was just as peaceful as when he came here years ago, when he was still in team seven. He was surprised to see that the village had changed so much over the years. It was no longer the old dirty town with cows running about, but it was better organized. The structures didn't look as developed as other countries, but it was simple and cozy. Despite it lacking vibrant colours, like Konoha, the village felt akin to a warm home.

The village was considerably big, almost three times bigger than that of Konoha. Did they expand the village?

Walking through the busy streets, he asked an old man, who happened to pass by, for directions. He wanted to know a place where he could lodge with his 'ill' wife from their long journey. It didn't have to be fancy, just a place good enough for a temporary stay. The man looked at the woman pitifully, she does look very ill. Her body was frail and pale.

"Well, young man. If you're looking for a good place to stay at then I suggest you go to the lodging centre just down the street over there." The old man pointed to his left.

"It's very common to see strange folks wandering over to our country; especially over the years. Our village used to be very small, but our Kage decided to expand it in order to cope with the rapidly growing population. Refugees never seem to stop coming, so the Kage had opened a lodging centre. There are many vacant houses outside of our village, spread around the small country, specially prepared for new immigrants. The lodging centre would be able to give you a detailed description about the houses, location, price, and so on."

After the kind explanation, Sasuke thanked the old man before heading towards the said lodging centre. It was surprisingly big, almost as big as the Hokage tower, with people bustling in and out. Seeing an entrance by the distance, he decided to walk in.

He strode towards the vacant seat in front of an attendant. The woman with glasses looked up from her paper, to see her new client. She pushed up her glasses with an index finger. Brown eyes roamed towards the unconscious figure securely tucked in his arms with her head against his chest.

"Welcome, how may I help you?" her voice was curt and professional.

Sasuke took a seat.

"I'm looking for a place."

The woman nodded.

"Right. Are you new to this country?"

"Yes."

Her curious eyes travelled down to the woman.

Noticing her silent gesture, Sasuke answered her question before she even asked.

"She's my wife."

She nodded again. He was confused at the woman's actions. Why hadn't she asked about why they're here? Or what they were doing here?

The woman made a motion to rummage through her drawer, producing a document, a map, and a pen. The map lay open; it was a map of the country.

"The blue dots you see on the map are the available vacant houses. Have your pick."

Onyx eyes scanned over the map. He preferred a place with as little people as possible in an isolated area. But he didn't see any on the map.

"I'm looking for a place, preferably with very few people in an isolated area. Do you have any suggestions?"

The woman smirked.

"So you're one of those being hunted?"

Sasuke quirked an eyebrow at her rude comment.

"I'm sorry; it's against my profession to pry into other people's business. It's just that we don't usually give our especially secluded areas unless our client is in a special situation and have the money. There are already a lot of wanted people in this country, you see. We can't give them _all _special treatments. A lot of them had requested a secluded place just like you. Although, I may reconsider depending on what your situation is."

He wouldn't mind telling her, it's just that he was worried that there might be eavesdroppers around.

"Your information will be kept confidential. I can promise you. Right now, our conversation is being hidden by a genjutsu so rest assured."

Sasuke's tensed body relaxed.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke." He activated his Sharingan as proof.

Then he gestured towards his wife.

"My wife is Hyuuga Hinata."

The attendant's eyes widened in disbelief with her jaws slightly hanging open. She _knew _who this man was, heck, even the entire world know who he was. He was an international criminal, whose older brother killed the entire clan. Moreover, the woman lying in his arms was the former Hyuuga heiress. Having a runaway Uchiha with a Hyuuga could only one thing: trouble. She could imagine the whole army of shinobis looking for them right now. She was dealing with a very delicate situation.

She swallowed hard.

"I understand," she whispered grimly.

She summoned a scroll from a puff of smoke. It was another map. The layout seemed different, somehow; there were a few areas which were never shown in the other map.

Her slender finger slid towards a waterfall.

"This waterfall is well hidden inside the deep forests of the mountain. Your new home is located behind the waterfall, in a cave. It's a small spring, so no one knows of its existence, except for one."

He looked at her expectantly.

"Your brother, Uchiha Itachi.'

Sasuke couldn't believe what he was hearing. _His_ brother had been here? He was a missing ninja after all, so it shouldn't be surprising, but still...

"He was a saint in disguise. Everyone in this country knows of him, in fact every neutral country knows of him. As you know, most of the neutral territories were always poor and many tyrants had come to take over. Itachi, who had the charisma, leadership, and empathy had travelled around those territories, not only seeking refuge, but to help reform and reorganize them as well. It was all because of him that Bird Country had become what it is today. The unwritten conduct as well as the enforced law for the neutral countries was made by him. He had made sure that helpless countries who seek peace, like us, were left alone by tyrants. Which is why, neutral countries were now, by law, are to be left alone. It was thanks to him that we are all able to form a union to enforce this law six years ago."

"It's a pity; the man could have become a great leader of the Uchiha clan."

Sasuke swallowed guiltily.

"I know. I'm sorry that I took away your hero..."

"It's not your fault. We all know what really happened."

His eyes were beginning to itch, but he resisted the urge to let the hot tears fall. Red eyes were hidden behind his strands of hair.

"Since we never got a chance to repay him, I would gladly let you stay for as long as you want without charge. It's the least we could do for your brother. In fact, I can even request the Kage to make you a special pass for you to stay in other neutral territories for free. The countries are in your brother's debt after all, and I have no doubt that they would agree to do the same thing we did for you. Oh, the Kage would be so pleased to hear that you are staying here!"

Sasuke couldn't keep the ball of pride surging through his chest. _His_ brother was a saint, a hero; he always was whenever and wherever he was. He was a saint enough to take on the false image of being a villain when he was actually a hero. He was too good of a man. He inwardly thanked his brother.

Maybe this was a part of his crazy calculations where one day Sasuke would eventually be a rogue ninja who would need to seek refuge. He probably purposely decided to leave the countries indebted to him so they would help his little brother in his favour. A small grin slipped upon his lips.

"Uchiha-sama, I would be honoured to escort you around town as well as to your new home. Your ill wife will need medical attention as well as new clothing. Her yukata is in shambles!"

Admitting that his wife being ill was just a cover story, she replied dumbfounded with a

"I see..."

After Sasuke had kindly declined her offer for escort, he requested for a map instead. Since their new home was located in an isolated area, it would be a very long journey back to the main village. He decided he should do a little of shopping for Hinata as well as ingredients before leaving. He made a mental note of that while scanning the map for shops.

Scanning around the area of his home, he discovered that there were a few snack houses, tea houses, as well as flower shops a few kilometres away from the waterfall. It was a very quiet neighbourhood.

She never asked for his background information, documents, birth certificate and other things usually need as a standard procedure when applying for residence in a another country. Again, she had mentioned that it was unnecessary as the country does not go into other people's business. Well,_ they knew everything _anyway.

A neutral country was to its inhabitants who are in need. Even if they are good or bad, everyone was treated equally. They do not side nor do they fight against other countries. They simply serve their own country by concerning over their people's well being.

All the attendant needed was his signature.

Asking how she knew so much information about his clan and Konoha, the woman had answered that truthfully, everyone working in the lodging centre were missing elite information intelligence shinobis. They were like walking encyclopaedias, holding just about any and every secret information about their former countries. They know more information that the elite intelligence from any other country. Rogue elite intelligence ninjas gather together from different countries, sharing critical information. This was one of the reasons why most countries would fear neutral territories; they were afraid that they can reveal the countries' deepest darkest political secrets. It was best it they really were left alone. Even if they are neutral, they were like a living, breathing time bomb.

On the other hand, this was good news for Sasuke. He would be able to get first hand information about who are currently chasing after him and whether they close by. With an amazing information network from these guys, he would be able to leave earlier before they could even step foot inside the country. They were safe; all the neutral countries were on his side.

Nami, was the attendant's name. She had promised him that she would send him a messenger once the pass had been approved. He was told to be prepared, for the Kage would surely summon him any time soon. Although he was reluctant, he had to accept for the sake of his brother's honour.

Nami suggested he leave Hinata in the resting area while he goes shopping. It would be rather troubling to carry an unconscious woman through the busy streets. He agreed without hesitation.

Now he was browsing through the stores, when a particular one caught his eye. It was a women's attire and accessory shop. It wasn't the time to think about his pride. He needed to get Hinata something new to wear. She looked so ragged that it was embarrassing.

Hauls of women pounced on him the moment he stepped into the store.

_'How annoying!'_

They were rambling nonsensically about god who knows what. They were just oogling over him like all girls usually do. He was thankful that Hinata wasn't like one of them.

"I'm looking for some kimono for my wife."

The moment those words left his mouth, the women pouted and slowly dispersed with disappointment

_'Well that was rather helpful.'_ He though sarcastically.

A middle aged woman came out from the back of the store, investigating what the ruckus was all about. She must be the owner. The employees immediately tended to their duties when they saw her.

"I'm sorry for the way these rude immature children treated you."

The sharp glare pointing towards them made the girls gulp.

Turning her attention back to her customer, she beamed.

"How may I help you, Uchiha-sama?'

He was puzzled.

"How did you-"

"You look just like your older brother!"

Before he could open his mouth, the senile old woman began rambling on to herself.

"Oh, it is such an honour! What brings you to this humble shop?"

"I'm looking for a few things for my wife."

"Married already?"

He nodded.

"How wonderful! Are you expecting yet?"

Sasuke was starting to get annoyed. But he shouldn't get mad, it wasn't the woman's fault; he just didn't feel like talking much. Besides, her questions were rather awkward.

"No."

Getting the signal that the man doesn't seem to want to talk much anymore, she led him to the other side of the store. This side of the store contained first class kimonos made from the finest silk.

"An Uchiha woman needs to wear pride and elegance," she advised.

He didn't want to spend the money he had. Just buying one piece of the clothing would already take one month's worth. He only had enough money to last them for six months.

The owner chuckled.

"Don't worry about the price. I'll tell you what; I'll give you five articles of clothing for free; as for the rest I'll give them to you at half the price. It's the least I could do."

The offer was tempting, but he felt guilty. Besides, he didn't think Hinata would need that many clothes.

"I can't accept. Just one piece would do. I don't think my wife would need a lot of clothing anyway."

"Is this how you treat your wife?"

Who was this woman to judge how he treats his wife?

"I-"

"By the heavens Uchiha-sama! You should treat your wife like a treasure. A woman is a man's anchor in life; you should never take her for granted. At least take the five articles of clothing!"

If he didn't accept the offer, he knew the woman wouldn't stop preaching. She was already making him walk down the guilt trip. Did he really look like a bad husband?

Sighing in frustration, he decided to take five articles for free, but in addition, he would buy another three pieces because he didn't want to look like a cheapskate jerk who just wanted free purchases. He didn't want to dishonour his clan.

"Fine. I'll take five pieces of Kimono for free. I'll pay for three articles of kunoichi gear and two sleeping yukatas. You'll be choosing for me because I don't know much about women's clothing."

"Any accessories? I'll give you two pieces of hair ornaments made from the finest jewels and metal for free."

He shrugged not caring much anymore.

"I know just what to get! Stay right here; I'll be right back."

After what seemed like fifteen minutes of waiting patiently, the store owner came back with a large, nicely packed parcel. She handed it to him, while leading him to the cashier.

"Oh, I think you forgot to mention about her lingerie, so I picked them myself; they're also free of charge. If you need anything else for yourself, there's a men's clothing store just opposite from ours."

He nodded as a gesture of appreciation.

"Hn."

A thought struck him.

"I would to add something to my purchase."

"Yes?"

"...Black contact lenses."

The woman smiled.

"Right."

The trip to their home was tiring, especially with Hinata on his back while having his hands full with shopping bags. Nami was right, it was inconvenient for him to travel so far, but it was worth it; he wanted to be far away from civilization as possible.

Due to his brother's good deed, the locals had welcomed him greatly. He received many 'free' gifts from shop vendors. If they weren't free, then he would get them for a generous discount, though it was only a one day special.

Reaching the waterfall, he approached the mossy stone wall hidden behind the waters. It was a special lock which could only read the owner's chakra signature. Nami had given him a key scroll to reset the lock, which he did.

Activating his chakra through the tips of his fingers, he rested his five digits onto the cool wet wall. Slowly, the large stone wall opened, revealing a large cave.

The echoes of the waterfall were blocked out when the stone gate closed. He took a moment to observe his surroundings. It was breathtakingly beautiful.

Hidden behind the waterfall was a silent dark cave. The dark cave, however, had more life than he had thought possible.

Splotches of sun light spilled through the gaps on the ceiling of the cave, illuminating the dim cave like little spotlights. Butterflies entering from the gaps of the ceiling fluttered around the rays light.

Surprisingly, there were patches of green grass as he went in deeper into the dome. Purple bell shaped flowers sprouted from the grass along with other colours. There were different kinds of petite flowers staining the grass like beautiful paint. A small stream of water flowed through the field, mimicking a miniature river. The cave was vibrant.

Compared to the summer heat outside, the cave was cooler. It soothed his sticky skin.

His eyes wandered to the centre of the grassy patch. Standing in the middle of the small field was what seemed to be a relatively large traditional house.

The house was fully furnished, but dusty due to the lack of use. He made a mental note to clean up the bedroom first to let Hinata rest in.

Putting all the groceries on the floor in the living room, he carried Hinata to one of the bed rooms. It was barren and filled with dust. Hinata would need to be put somewhere else first. He opened the door to the patio, letting her body rest against the beamer of the roof.

He discovered a storage room which kept all the cleaning materials. Grabbing a bucket and a rag, he walked towards the stream outside to fill it with water.

The wet cloth scrubbed furiously against every corner of the room, ensuring that the room was free from any speck of grime. Opening one of the closets, he found a large set of futon which would be able to fit more than two people. He dusted the blankets, sheets and pillows, making sure they were clean before airing them outside on the bench.

He would need to go back to buy a liner to hang the laundry. But for now, the bench should do.

While waiting for the futon to air, he switched his attention to the other parts of the house. All the windows were wide open, allowing the small breeze to freshen the air inside. Taking out his groceries, he placed them neatly in the cleaned cup board and kitchen counter. It was hard to maintain a house this big; he preferred a smaller one instead.

By the time he finished the last of his chores, which was cleaning the bath room; he decided that it was probably about time to bring in the futon. After neatly laying out the futon, he carried Hinata inside, placing her gently on the soft material.

_'Now, time to change her.'_

He couldn't just leave her sleeping in that ragged thing any longer. He felt guilty if he was to leave her in that state. It was wrong for a husband.

Sasuke grabbed the heavy parcel which lay by the door. Tearing it open, be began to sort through the articles of clothing. A small vain popped on his forehead. His cheeks became slightly flushed.

_'Seriously! What was that old hag thinking? T-this is...'_

Apparently, the clothes which the shop owner picked out were all indeed elegant, but more in an indecent way. Sasuke swore that none of the clothing didn't show at least some skin in a suggestive way. Maybe he should have had picked out the clothing himself.

Moving on to the under garments, he felt even more uncomfortable when he saw them. They were _all _kinky looking. The bras were all lacy and...

_'How the hell did that woman know her size?'_

It was a mystery to him. It was hard to imagine how big her breasts were, but he had _felt _them briefly before, in her mind. There were four articles of them which all come in different shades.

_'Black, red, navy blue, and white...'_

Those were all the colours of an Uchiha.

He moved on to the underwear, if he could even call them that.

_'Are these thongs?'_

Again, they came with the same shade as the bras. They were probably a set.

He sighed mentally.

"I need to keep myself together," he mumbled.

His hands were ready to peel off her tattered yukata, until his conscience kicked.

This was wrong; he was violating her!

His hands shook, inches away from her sash.

Even if he had tried to tell himself to stop, he wouldn't anyway. He was a man for heaven's sake!

_'Besides, I'm her husband damnit! I have every right to do whatever the hell I want with her.'_

Amazement, or more like mischief, twinkled in his eyes. He didn't know that Hinata had such a perfect heavenly body. All her curves were in their right places. Although, she was more on the skinny side because of her lack of nutrition during her imprisonment.

Her perfectly curved hips, her slender waist, her firm yet soft body...

His eyes landed on her bossom; it was _big_. Probably rivalled the size of Tsunade's.

The arousal within him was strongly becoming apparent. He needed to finish dressing her before he does something shameful.

Her under garments were hastily put on. He realized that the bra was a half cut design, therefore revealing the upper half of the breasts dangerously. For a second, he was worried whether the material could hold her assets in place. Unable to contain his arousal any longer, he quickly grabbed her new yukata, wrapping her seductive body securely.

He didn't want to be an ass by returning the 'gifts' which the store owner had kindly picked out for him. Yes, it may sound like an excuse, and he may have another motive but he would never dare admit it.

_'At least the yukata looks decent.'_

Onyx eyes lingered on her soft creamy lips. Dark indigo strands framed her delicate porcelain skin.

_'Like a sleeping beauty.'_

Sasuke admitted he had fallen in love with her already for quite some time; ever since he was in her head. She was similar to him in many ways during her younger years in life and he admired her determination. But he kept denying the feeling himself before, hiding it in the corner of his heart. But now that they were married, he can't deprive her from a husband's love. They had a vow which binds them together for a lifetime.

Why had he chosen to marry her? Simple, she seemed to be the perfect candidate to produce his offspring. She had the byakugan, which made perfect compatibility with the sharingan. But he knew that was just an excuse; the truth was he really wanted to have her.

At least, only _he_ was aware of their marriage. Now there was a new problem: how was he going to persuade an amnesiac that they were a married couple? Adjusting to a married life would be a challenge he would gladly take.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the giving you guys false hope, hehe. Turns out that there wasn't much of the HOT ROMANCE I mentioned before. Well, maybe there is just a little bit... but I decided to give these two a little room for development since I didn't want to rush things. Love you all!


	7. Chapter 7

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

A/N: Hello my lovely readers! It seems that I won't be able to update weekly from today onwards since I will be very busy with my finals. I hope you all understand, Love y'all!

* * *

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 7: Awakening

Hinata groggily cracked her eyes open. The blinding light made her teary eyes squint.

_'What...'_

Alarmed by her surroundings, she shot out of her sleeping position. She was sitting straight in alarm while scanning the room for any sign of danger.

A dark shadow could be seen outside the paper screen door. Someone was coming in.

Her entire body went rigid when the figure stepped inside.

It was a man, a _very_ handsome man; tall and lean. Now was not the time to examine this eye candy. She shook her head mentally in an attempt to make herself focus. She needed answers _now._

Her mouth was about to open when the stranger ran towards her, falling on his knees. His expression was filled with surprise.

Who was he? Does she know him?

Warm arms encircled around her waist, tugging her towards his exposed chest. She resisted the urge to blush but to no avail.

"Thank goodness, you're finally awake...I was so worried about you!"

Now she was really confused. What the hell is going on? More questions started running through her mind, but the last one puzzled her the most; who was she? Why can't she remember anything? Her mind was like a blank sheet of paper.

Delicate hands pushed against his hard chest in an attempt to get out of his hold.

"E-excuse me, but who are you? What am I doing here? Who am I? Why can't I remember anything?"

More questions spilled out of her mouth.

The man looked at her with disbelief.

"Can you really not remember anything... at all?" he asked.

She shook her head.

Onyx eyes were down casted to the floor. He seemed to be upset about something.

"Well, you were hurt pretty badly on your head; we were lucky enough that you even woke up."

His voice was small, almost breaking. Why was he so worried about her?

"Please tell me what happened. I need to know everything! I feel so lost right now, I-"

Callused yet gentle hands caressed her cheeks, preventing her from finishing her sentence.

"Just relax. Let's take things slowly there's no need to rush. I'll tell you everything you want to know."

She took his advice, taking a deep breath to calm herself.

"I'll grab some tea, you must be thirsty. Wait for moment alright?"

"..Alright," she squeaked.

When his presence had left the room, Hinata noticed that there was a full body length mirror standing in one corner of the room. She took a glance at it to study herself.

Was this what she looked like? Her eyes travelled up to study her facial features. She nearly screamed when she saw her eyes.

_'My eyes! Why are they such a strange colour?'_

It was frightening at first, but she soon realized that she liked the colour of her eyes. They were pearly lavender; it was pretty.

She smiled at her own reflection.

While preparing Hinata's tea, Sasuke was running through the cover up story in his head. He had come up with all the possible questions she would ask and he had all the answers. All he needed to do was to thread them together to make a believable story. He could do this; he had been preparing for this moment for the past three hours.

Noticing that the kettle started whistling, he grabbed the pot to fill it up. The warm tea should make her more relaxed as well as quench her thirst. He had completely forgotten to give her any drink while she was unconscious.

When Sasuke returned to the room, he noticed Hinata sizing herself at the mirror. Did she forget how she looked like? He knew his sharingan had the power to erase memories, but he didn't know to what extent. He would need to narrate her new life like writing a new story in a blank book; even her own identity.

He inwardly cursed, Sasuke wasn't aware that it was going to be this hard.

Seeing his reflection on the mirror, Hinata averted her attention towards him.

She shifted herself into a more proper position on her futon. The tea was kindly settled in front of her. Hinata hadn't realized that she was so thirsty until she took a long draught from the cup, ignoring the scalding heat.

Once satisfied, the cup was settled back down. Pearly lavender eyes looked at his onyx ones expectantly. She was ready to listen.

"First, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Sasuke," he started.

He continued on telling her about his age, birthday, hobbies, and so on but hadn't disclosed any information about his clan. He hadn't intended to disclose any information about hers either. It was better if he kept everything simple.

After he was done with his introduction, he moved on to her story.

"Your name was Hyuuga Hinata, but you're an Uchiha now since you're married to me."

A small gasp escaped her lips. Seeing her disbelief, he summoned their marriage contract as proof.

"You're twenty one now and we've been married for nearly two years. We live in the poor outskirts in Fire Country; born into shinobi families. About two days ago, a rogue ninja broke into our home when I was out. You injured your head while struggling against them, but I managed to make it in time before they managed to deliver a finishing blow...I was so relieved. I couldn't even bring myself to imagine what would happen if I really did lose you."

"I managed to kill a few, but not all so escaping was the only option. Our home was nearest to Bird Country, so I decided to take you here to seek medical attention as soon as possible. In case if you're wondering, we're now living in a remote area deep in the mountains of Bird Country. Because of our rare bloodline, a lot of people have been after us, like those rogue ninjas. It would be harder for them to detect mine, but yours was very obvious."

"What are our bloodlines?" she asked curiously.

Sasuke activated his sharingan for demonstration.

"Both our bloodlines are ocular jutsus. Mine is the sharingan and yours, the byakugan. In the shinobi world, many fear the power we possess, therefore a lot of shinobi countries have been after the Uchihas and Hyuuga clans for our eyes. Which was why, we were keeping a low profile by living a minor's life in the outskirts."

He continued to explain about how both their bloodlines function. Hinata was worried that she couldn't remember how to use them. But, Sasuke had kindly assured her that with time, her body will remember naturally. It was in her blood after all.

She was given a box of black coloured contact lenses, telling her that it was to disguise her distinct eye colour.

"What happened to our clan?"

"They were all killed."

Hinata couldn't decide whethershe should feel sad for them. They were her family, but she can't bring herself to remember them at all. To her, they were complete strangers.

Small hands were wrapped in large calloused ones. The onyx eyes of her husband darkened.

"Hinata, I have to warn you about something. We are wanted shinobis so we absolutely can't trust _anyone_ except each other got it? Never give out your true identity unless I say so. Never give your maiden's name or my last name. Always keep your contacts on unless we're at home."

He was warning her and she knew she had to take it seriously. Their safety was on the line.

"O-okay..."

Suddenly, he noticed the change in her attitude when she started to fiddle with her fingers.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked.

Her pearly eyes seemed to be darting in different directions, as if she was contemplating about something. Then, a pretty blush bloomed on her cheeks.

"U-uhmm...H-how did we fall in love?"

Sasuke inwardly smirked; this was easy to answer since whatever he was going to say was going to be partially the truth anyway, at least on his part. Perhaps a little bit of exaggeration too?

"Actually, it was more of _me_ falling in love with _you._"

Her cheeks reddened even more at his words.

"H-How?"

He leaned slightly back, striking a thinking pose with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Well...when we were younger, I used to be the biggest heartthrob in our little village. There were always those annoying stalkers chasing after me. There wasn't a single girl who hadn't fallen for me."

His gaze drilled into hers.

"Except for you. For some reason, you were the only one who hadn't fallen for me. Out of all the guys, you had your eyes set on the village's number one loser."

Hinata giggled.

"Who?"

"Don't remember." He shrugged uncaringly.

"Anyways, we were in the same class in the academy at some point. I never really paid much attention to you until that one time, when I accidentally made eye contact with you. Your eyes were so beautiful that I was mesmerized. I was curious about you, so I started asking people around. They said you never had many friends and always spend your free time training alone."

"One day, I happened to stumble across your training ground. I was awed at how hard you trained. When I saw you, I see myself... We were both striving to be acknowledged by our clans, we were always afraid to be left behind; we were the outcasts in our family. That was when I fell in love with you because I admired your determination. No one may have realized your inner beauty back then, but I sure do."

Hinata felt remorseful that she hadn't felt love towards her own husband. To her, he was another stranger. This man must be a devoted husband who loved her very much. But sadly, she couldn't feel much of anything towards him.

"S-Sasuke," the name sounded foreign as it rolled off her tongue.

"I-I'm sorry to say this but, I can't remember the love I felt for you."

Tears started trailing down her cheeks.

"I'm so sorry! I can't love you right now, everything's so confusing. You probably loved me like no other and you probably had sacrificed so much for our love, but... I..."

Now Sasuke was at loss.

"_Great, now what do I do?"_

Without realizing it, he embraced her tightly. He tried to say anything that would come up from the top of his head.

"It's not your fault. Even if you have forgotten the love you felt for me, I'll just have to make you fall in love with me again right? We can make new memories together."

She fisted the back of his shirt tightly.

After her sobs had died down, Sasuke released her albeit, reluctantly. He suggested she rest for a bit more while he prepares their meal.

"You must be hungry. I'll fix us something to eat."

Hinata hadn't realized how hungry she was until her stomach made a loud embarrassing sound which made her blush.

Sasuke chuckled, he would never get tired of her blush; it made her look cute.

Dinner was awkwardly silent for the couple. Sasuke was enjoying his fish until he nearly chocked at Hinata's words.

"Have we had sex before?"

What the hell? Since when had shy timid Hinata become so blatant? Maybe she lost a part of her personality too?

This wasn't a usual topic that someone would casually bring up, especially at the dinner table.

Sasuke cleared his throat in an attempt to recompose himself.

"No."

"So we never had children?"

_'What the hell is wrong with her?'_

"None."

Hinata was starting to feel suspicious. They've been married for nearly two years, but they never had sex before? Was she not appealing enough? Was there something wrong with her reproductive system?

"Was there something wrong with me?"

Losing his appetite, Sasuke settled his half empty bowl down.

_'Why is she asking all these questions?'_

Realization dawned upon him.

_'Damn!'_

A couple who had been married for two years and never had sex? That's overly suspicious. He better come up with an excuse before she starts to realize that there were some missing holes in his story.

"Love, it's not that there's something wrong with you. You're a perfectly functional woman who could bear me all the children I ever wanted. It's just that..."

_'Shit! It's just what? I can't come up with any good excuse.'_

The man was desperately trying to rake his brain for any kind of reasonable excuse.

He had to think fast.

Sasuke sighed in pretend defeat.

"Actually, I lied. We've done it before, very _frequently _in fact_._ I lied because I didn't want to startle you. I was afraid that if I said yes, you would feel that you've been violated because I'm just another stranger to you. We never had children because you weren't ready yet so we took contraceptive measures. Back then, you said you needed more time to think about it."

She nodded understandingly ignoring the shiver up her spine. So they _had_ done it.

"That was very thoughtful of you. Thank you."

A shy smile was directed at him, making him relax.

_'Good, she bought the story.'_

They did the dishes together, yet silence had befallen between them again. The only sound made were the clanging of the bowls and utensils. Hinata was lost in her own thought.

Being an amnesiac was very frustrating for her. She was starting to be emotionally unstable.

The bowl in her hands slip onto the floor, making her jump in surprise. Shards of porcelain punctured her soft skin. A small hiss escaped her lips.

Her husband abruptly stopped rinsing the dishes, turning fully alert. Dropping the dish into the sink, he quickly kneeled down to the floor.

"Hinata, you should be more careful!"

She winced at his outburst.

"Sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

Grabbing a nearby stool, Sasuke assisted her to sit. He tentatively plucked each shard out of her skin. Hinata bit back the urge to whimper. The bleeding wound was evenly cleaned with the soft dab of wet cloth.

"Wait, it's alright. I can heal it."

Heal? Of all things, she could only remember her medical jutsu? Well, that was useful in a way.

"So you remember how to heal?" he asked.

Her hand made a motion to place itself above the wound. Soft glowing chakra was emitted. The opened wound was starting to knit back together, as if time was being reversed.

"I don't know, it just came to me all of a sudden. Strangely the only things I remember were my healing techniques and how to make salves. I think it was my hobby to gather different herbs for making them."

Sasuke gave a small smile.

"You used to work at the local hospital. Your strongest ambition was to help others; you wanted to be as useful to others if not for your clan. I guess the things that are most important to you are hard to forget."

"But I forgot about you and my family," she countered.

Sasuke shrugged.

"Maybe you loved helping others more than anything."

That does sound reasonable to her.

She was back on her feet like nothing ever happened to it.

"I'm fine now. Thank you for worrying about me."

His hands dusted off the invisible dust on his pants as he stood up. It was getting late, it was about time he prepared her a bath.

Once she was told to prepare for a bath, Hinata smiled in appreciation before going back to her room to get a fresh set of clothes. She wasn't expecting the contents of her wardrobe. Was this her usual garments? How odd... She was even more startled when she saw her lingerie.

What in the world were these?

Her face flushed immensely. The only conclusion that came to her mind for having this sort of lingerie was probably it was either her hobby or it was to seduce her husband into bed.

The thought was harshly shoved away. After hastily grabbing a towel, she ran for the bathroom.

It took her a while to find out where the bathroom was since she hadn't taken a tour around the house yet other than the bedroom and the kitchen. The sound of water running could be heard from outside the bathroom door.

Sasuke stepped out of the bathroom, telling her that her bath was ready. Before she could stop herself, she blurted out something rather embarrassing.

"What about you?"

"What? You want to take a bath with me?" he asked teasingly.

"That's not what I mean! What I meant was, is it really alright if I take a bath first? I might take a long time so..." she trailed off, flustering.

A low chuckle rumbled.

"It's alright; I'll refresh myself by the waterfall."

She looked at him apologetically.

"Okay."

Tensed muscles relaxed when they made contact with the warm water. Noticing a window by her tub, she slide the wooden panel open. The sight marvelled her.

Their home appears to be in a dome within a cave just like Sasuke had described. It was beautiful. Feeling the cool damp breeze against her warm skin was bliss. Both elbows were perched by the windowsill; with her chin resting on top them. She knew there were rare medicinal herbs which grew in caves. Perhaps there were a few in the field.

_'He said he'd help me make new memories.'_

Her mind wandered off, slowly bringing her into a daze.

Sasuke was leaning against the rocky walls of the waterfall with his head held low. The cold beating water helped him think.

"What the hell have I gotten myself into?"

He shook his head fervently, grabbing some soap to scrub his skin raw, then took a bottle of shampoo.

Yes, he loved Hinata, but he needed to take things slowly with her from scratch. Even he, himself was new to this sort relationship, especially with the opposite sex. The problem would be, how would he get Hinata to fall in love with him? She was never in love with him in the first place. Despite him being the village's heartthrob, the only girl he could never seem to catch was her. Well, he had her now, but from an underhanded method. If Sasuke would never want to initiate the first move, he would let Hinata take care of that. It was an Uchiha pride sort of thing.

Hinata was in distress; her towel was _missing._ No doubt she had dropped the towel somewhere along the corridor by accident while she was on her way. Since there was no other way to dry her hair, she wrung the excess water out of her scalp.

Deciding to forgo the towel, she instead put on her lingerie; they felt clingy and uncomfortable against wet skin. Alternatively for her, it was a better choice to take them off instead, she fastened her yukata securely. It would be convenient to run straight into the bedroom and immediately dry herself before putting on her undergarments.

Thus she ran into the corridor, heading to the bedroom. The room was only a few meters away, until her wet feet gave away beneath her on the polished wooden floor.

Sasuke happened to walk back to their bedroom when he saw Hinata running towards his direction. Noticing her slip, he instinctively ran towards her.

Both figures crashed onto the floor with lingerie littered across. Limbs were entangled in an awkward position.

Sasuke's back made contact with the cold floor and winced. He held onto her head against his chest, while he had his legs in between hers. Realizing their embarrassing position, Hinata bolted up.

It was noticeable that his face was slightly flushed while looking at a certain area. Apparently, her yukata had slipped off her shoulders during the fall, giving him a perfect view of her nicely shaped bossom. Clutching the gap of the yukata closed, she screamed.

"Look, I'm sorry. I was trying to save you but somehow, we ended up in that weird situation."

There was no reply.

They were now in the bed room with Hinata fully dressed and burying herself beneath the sheets. There was a nice pink hand print imprinted on his left cheek like a stamp on a paper.

"Hinata..." She only buried herself deeper.

He ruffled his hair in frustration.

_'Alright then, let's try this...'_

"You know… it's not the first time I've seen your bare body. Besides, you've showed me yourself willingly plenty of times."

He could hear soft sniffles. Maybe that wasn't the right approach.

There was nothing he could do right now, they would have to sleep it away and pretend the incident never happened.

Hinata felt the futon sink slightly with the new added weight next to her. Her body slightly tensed.

Luckily the futon was large enough for Sasuke to give her some extra space while facing the opposite direction. The tension in the air was thick. Both of them knew that it was going to be a long night.


	8. Chapter 8

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

A/N: My dear readers thank you so much for your patience. I apologize that it took me nearly forever to update!

* * *

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 8: Social Visit

Never in his life, for over a decade had Sasuke woken up with such bliss. Bloody horrible nightmares no longer plagued his sleep but rather, a lovely beautiful angel. First thing he saw when he woke up was having his wife's body pressed intimately against his. She was practically holding him like a pillow with her yukata suggestively hanging off her shoulders to reveal soft creamy white skin. For a minute, he had the idea of taking her right there and then. His thoughts drifted off to last night's 'incident' after her bath. He remembered vividly how her front was generously revealed. Her two plump yet deliciously looking orbs which could rival Tsunade's and those ripe pink...

His bliss was short lived when his pale eyed angel cracked her eyes open. It took her a few seconds to register their position. It was then a loud squeak escaped her lips. Sasuke earned a nice hit from her Gentle Fist technique, which almost sent him flying off to the other side of the room. He wanted to laugh at the irony of the name. The so called gentle fist had packed a whole great deal of chakra and power, nearly knocking the air out of him.

He winced, while struggling to get up.

_'Wonderful, not only is this new Hinata more blatant, but she's getting more violent too. She slapped me yesterday and tried to kill me this morning!'_

Wait, she can do the Gentle Fist? He had expected she had forgotten her fighting style. Abruptly sitting up, he glared intensely at the now red faced woman.

"You remembered how to do the Gentle Fist?"

Hinata gave him a puzzled look.

"G-gentle...Fist? What's that?"

He cocked his head to the side.

"It's one of your fighting styles."

She still had that clueless look on her face.

"But I don't know any fighting styles."

Maybe she did it out of reflex? Although she had forgotten about her techniques, her muscles won't. It was probably her muscle memory doing the job of self defence.

"I think your body reacted by instinct, causing your muscle memory to react. Something you've been training with for almost your entire life will be engraved into your muscle memory," he explained.

Hinata nodded in understanding.

"If you want, I help you with training to make you remember your family's fighting style as well as activating your byakugan. After all, you'll need to have some sort of self defence," he offered.

She shrugged.

An awkward silence befell on the couple, until an unfamiliar chakra was felt from the entrance of the cave. The cave was surrounded by a barrier which allows the inhabitants to sense anyone stepping within their boundary. Apparently, there was a stranger who knows of this cave's existence since they seem to be waiting in front of the closed wall behind the waterfall, waiting for their entrance to be granted.

"I think we have a guest. Stay here while I check."

Sasuke gingerly stood up with a light grunt and exited the room.

The smell of the morning dew in the cool cave was a refreshing feeling first thing in the morning. He wanted to stop and just enjoy it, but he knew he needed to see the so called intruder. There was no time to leisure around. Normally, he would probably stroll through the fields, enjoying the scenery but now he was briskly walking through like he doesn't have a care in the world.

He reached the rim of the field and continued walking on the barren rocky ground which was wet due to the humid. Bright blue chakra was emitted from the tip of his fingers before he placed them on the hand print on the cool wall. He closed his eyes.

Not only does the handprint chakra serve as a lock but a 'peep hole' too. By focusing a certain amount of chakra while closing his eyes, Sasuke was able to see the figure on the other side. The man seemed harmless and his chakra showed no sign of hostility. After doing a full check up on the visitor, Sasuke decided that it was safe to allow entry. The chakra wave on his finger tips changed. Slowly, with a low rumble the damp walls of the cave parted.

Standing in front of him was a young man around his mid twenties with nicely cropped hair which reached to his shoulders. In his hands, he held a sealed envelope.

_'A messenger?'_

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked gruffly. He was well known for his lack of courtesy but he didn't care. The only people he would bother showing his courtesy to would be either his wife or his clan, which the latter no longer exist.

The man seemed to be shaking when he saw the Uchiha. It seems he was infamous amongst the villagers. They know his horrid reputation and what he was capable of doing. The messenger seemed to know when to fear the Uchiha. Good for him, at least he had the brain to not get himself killed by saying anything stupid or angering him. Sasuke nearly laughed at the sight before him. The poor man seemed like he was about to wet his pants. He was practically shaking like hell.

"G-Good morning U-Uchih-ha-san. I-I H-hope I'm n-not b-bothering you or anything..."

The poor lad seemed as if he couldn't continue due to his fear. Sasuke would love to see him bite his tongue from all the stuttering. If he thought Hinata's old stuttering was bad, this man was even worse!

Sasuke arched an eyebrow, feigning annoyance. He was enjoying the man trembling in fear.

"As a matter of fact, you did disturb me. What's so important that you had to disturb my sleep this early in the morning? It better be a good reason or else..."

His sharingan eyes activated.

Ah, torment. It was one of his favourite sadistic hobbies. A small smirk formed on his lips, but the other man misinterpreted it as a smirk of hostility rather than amusement.

_'Oh god! He's going to kill me!' _The man thought with fear.

He needed to get out of here as soon as possible without getting himself maimed.

He thrust the envelope forward with shaking hands. Sasuke snatched it from the messenger's grasp.

"T-This i-is all I-I have to g-give y-you!"

Without another word, the man dashed off with his buckling knees, away from the Uchiha's sight.

Once he made sure the man was out of ear shot, he let out a chuckle. While shaking his head, he walked back into his domain.

Hinata looked at the envelope her husband was holding with curiosity.

"What's that?" she pointed.

"I don't know. Let's find out shall we?"

He sat on their futon cross legged. He tore off the seal on the envelope. Producing the neatly folded parchment, he began scanning the paper.

Hinata scooted closer to get a better look over his shoulders. He could feel her soft chest pressing against his hard back.

_'Damn it, she's driving me insane!'_

"Well?"

She asked him innocently, unaware with the fact that she was driving her sexually deprived husband insane with a simple gesture.

He snapped out of his reverie, focusing his attention back to the letter.

"It's an invitation. We're invited to have lunch with the Kage in mid afternoon."

Hinata's eyes widened.

"The Kage? Why would the Kage want to dine with us?"

"Well, I haven't mentioned that we're important people have I?" He said sheepishly.

"Important people?"

Hinata was in awe.

"Just how important are we? What did we do to gain such status?"

Her excitement and curiosity was getting the better of her, causing her to lean further forward, putting more pressure on Sasuke's back. He could feel her perk rubbing against him.

_'Easy there...'_ he told himself.

He was sweating bullets now while trying to tame himself. Feeling that he was about to lose control, he discreetly scooted away from her contact making her fall forward.

There was a small gasp before she pouted cutely at him.

"What was that for?"

"We need to get ready."

He evened his slightly laboured breathing.

"Umm...Sasuke-kun, what exactly do we do for a living?"

He stood up, facing her.

"We sell medicine that we brew ourselves; it's what you love best. That's why we have a field of herbs outside."

"Oh..."

He crouched down to her eye level, poking her forehead, the same way as his as his deceased brother.

He smirked.

"Get changed, we're leaving soon."

Hinata nodded and walked towards a wooden screen, which was painted aesthetically with cranes and blossoms. She grabbed a few articles of clothing before disappearing behind the changing screen.

Sasuke made a quick change of clothes himself. He was already stripped down to his waist until he heard Hinata's question.

Her muffled voice could be heard.

"U-uh, Sasuke-kun, is this really the type of clothing I usually wear?"

Sasuke was seriously contemplating on whether he should say yes or no. He didn't want her walking out in public parading her tempting body. Hell, he didn't even want her to expose a single patch of her skin if possible. He wanted it all for himself. Sasuke was a very greedy man, and his whole life has proven that.

Besides, if he was to say no, it wasn't what she would usually wear, then she would ask more complicated questions which would force him to think up of more lies. He was getting tired of making up stories; if he was to make anymore, he might as well write a fictional story. Moreover, he would need to exchange them with the female shop owner. Again, he didn't want to look like a jerk for rejecting a gift in exchange for a new one. He was already known to be the world's biggest jerk, but he didn't want to taint his brother's dignity. He needs to stop being a jerk for his brother's sake.

Sasuke didn't want to admit it, but they were all just a bunch of excuses to hide his real intent. The truth was he really liked the attire that the shop had chosen. In fact, he can't even wait until Hinata comes out of that damn changing screen!

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't realized that he never finished changing. He was half naked when Hinata finally revealed herself.

She shyly walked from behind the screen. What Sasuke saw made his throat go dry.

'For the love of...Argh! She's literally turning me on every time I lay my eyes on her!'

His wife was berating his mind like a tease.

Her kimono was blue in colour with silver petals scattered around. The fabric pooled beneath her feet which trailed behind her; the sleeves nearly touching the floor. The kimono was elegant indeed, but what caught Sasuke's attention most was the generous amount of cleavage exposed. Just looking at her assets reminded him of a certain blond middle aged woman...

"Don't you think this looks rather well...indecent?" she asked.

'Indecently elegant.' He mentally corrected her.

"It looks perfectly fine."

He was starting to notice that she was eyeing his half-naked body.

He inwardly snickered.

"Like what you see?"

She was caught off guard, blushing.

"H-huh? Oh, sorry! I'll be waiting outside while you finish changing."

It was difficult for her to run in the heavy kimono so she power walked instead.

Sasuke was slightly disappointed; he wanted to tease her a little more. But he knew that Hinata would always cower away before the fun even started. If he forced things too much, he just might end up with a few broken limbs.

Sasuke was surprised to see a carriage waiting for both of them just on the other side of the water fall. The messenger must have been scared out of his hide that he'd forgotten to tell him that there would be an escort. Shrugging, he picked Hinata up bridal style, making sure that her kimono won't get drenched before walking on the water towards the waiting carriage.

The Kage in neutral countries were treated like a Daimyos since they don't have a figure head. The system in neutral countries work differently thus, the Kages were the ones who have the ultimate power, allowing them to govern an entire country.

Since this was the case, it wasn't surprising for the Uchiha to find that the Kage's residence was not a typical Kage tower but rather a palace, similar to that of a Daimyo's.

They were brought to a large dining hall specifically for guests and audiences. They were told to make themselves comfortable while the Kage's finishing up his meeting in another room. Hinata looked around the luxurious room with awe. She had never been an audience for such an important person before, at least, as far as her memory goes. She was tense, rigid, and downright nervous.

"Sasuke-kun, how should I act?"

She turned towards her husband for advice.

They were both seated on separate large cushions beneath them at the dining table.

"Just act like you normally do."

Sasuke wasn't being much of a help but he didn't care. He wasn't one to make social visits and he surely was not the type to make a social visit with meaningless topics chattered about. He wanted to go home as soon as possible.

He noticed Hinata beginning to put her two index fingers together out of nervousness. Her body must have picked up her old habit subconsciously.

"Stop that."

"Stop what?"

"That."

He gestured at her fingers.

Realizing what he meant, Hinata reluctantly dropped her hands onto her lap.

"Sorry. My body just..."

"Hn."

A maid came in shortly informing the guests that the Kage would arrive shortly.

Sasuke never liked waiting which means he was rather pissed off right now. What kind of host keep their guests waiting?

Soon enough, the Kage had made his grand entrance, sitting himself on the far end of the table whilst greeting his guests with a bow of respect, which the couple likewise, returned.

Lunch was uneventful as since the Kage did most of the talking. Sasuke had to resist the urge to yawn. He had to admit that he admired Hinata's feigned expression of interest. She even tried her best to engage a conversation with the other man. Alas the taboo topic of Uchiha Itachi was approached.

Sasuke never liked it when strangers bring up his brother's name. Sure he felt pride, but all other feelings like guilt were mixed inside as well. It made him feel awful.

"Your elder brother Itachi was indeed a great man..."

When those words left his mouth, Hinata sat straighter in great interest. She never anything about Sasuke's brother and judging from the Kage's speech, it seems that he was a hero. This intrigued her so she listened intently.

The rest of the afternoon went by in a haze. Sasuke was relieved that it was finally time to go home. It was already late afternoon; he was thinking about dinner but decided to pass on that thought. He didn't have any more room from the sumptuous lunch he had. Hinata seemed to agree with the fact as well.

Once in the carriage, Hinata was the first to break the silence.

"Your brother... he must have been a great hero."

Sasuke, who was facing the window, diverted his attention to her.

"To me, he was more than a hero. He even went as far as playing a villain to save his beloved people, but only to be betrayed by those ungrateful bastards."

A pained expression etched his features. He was disgusted with himself. He had murdered his own beloved brother without a second thought. Itachi had done and suffered so much for his sake and he murdered him in cold blood.

Sasuke's clutched fists shook as he struggled to even his breath.

"S-Sasuke-kun?"

Hinata placed a worried hand over his.

Something warm and hot slid down his eyes. Sasuke was crying blood.

Feeling the warm thick liquid dripping on her porcelain skin, Hinata jerked back.

"What's wrong?" she said in a panic.

She lifted his head with her hands on either side. She came face to face with an angry red looking magenkyo sharingan.

"Your eyes are blee-"

"I...I'm a monster..."

"Sasuke what are you talking about?"

"I'm disgusted with myself! I shouldn't even be alive!"

He was yelling at the top of his lungs by now. He could feel more blood mixed with tears sliding down his cheeks. He grinded his teeth together with rage.

Deciding not to say anything which would potentially agitate him, Hinata carefully produced a handkerchief from the long sleeve of her kimono. She gently padded his face, trying her best to get rid of the stain. But it was useless, the bleeding won't stop.

_'His eyes are filled with so much hatred and grief...but why?"_

She sat quietly next to her husband, giving him some space to calm his mind. She was ready to listen to whatever he had to say.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to scare you. It's just...My brother... he died because of me."

Hinata's eyes widened with surprise. She wisely chose to keep her mouth shut and continued to listen.

"I was no different than the other villagers. I see him as a traitor and a disgrace to the Uchiha clan. I was so hell bent on killing him because I thought he deserved it. I didn't realize that he did it for the sake of peace and sparing my life until it was too late. I...murdered my own beloved brother without even feeling any remorse!"

It was getting harder for him to continue with his chocking sobs.

Soft cool fingers cupped the side of his face. Hinata drew his face closer towards hers; she then placed her forehead against his. Sasuke's eyes fluttered closed, her scent was warm and comforting.

"Sasuke...It wasn't you fault, don't blame yourself. Itachi-san sacrificed his life for yours, so you shouldn't put his sacrifice in vain. Don't say selfish things like you don't deserve to live because you have other people to live for."

Sasuke's eyes opened groggily.

When he opened his eyes, no longer did he see red, but a beautiful bright smile from the woman before him. It was mesmerizing...

"You have your clan to live for and...me..."

The bleeding tears ceased to flow. Sasuke's eyes reverted back to its normal black onyx colour.

Hinata instantly retreated her hands and her face was flushed a healthy red.

"D-don't get the wrong idea! What I meant was...You're practically the only person I can depend on right? I mean I'm an amnesiac and it's not like I have my family anymore so...so..."

Sasuke cut her off.

"You know..."

"Huh?"

"You look as red as a tomato. Did I ever tell you that my favorite food in the entire world is tomatoes? You look awfully irresistible right now...it makes me want to _devour_ you."

Sasuke licked his lips teasingly.

Yet again, out of reflex, Hinata yelped and violently pushed him away from her.

Sasuke burst out laughing at her flustered state. Things were going to be rather different between the two after today.


	9. Chapter 9

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

A/N: My dear readers, here's a brand new chapter for the new year 2013! Happy reading!

**The Caged Raven**

Chapter 9: Pleased to Make your Acquaintance

First strike, second strike, third-

"You're too slow!"

Sasuke caught Hinata's hands on her third strike before she had the chance to finish.

"Do it one more time. Don't just focus on your hands, use your legs too," he advised.

She nodded with determination.

"Right!"

Hinata's mind was still distracted from the previous events from a few days ago, still unable to get over it. She was rather flustered with herself for the proximity they had on their way home.

_'Focus!'_

She mentally berated herself.

In a quick blur she found herself sprawled on the soft field, with her partner straddling her. He had his kunai dangerously close to her throat. It was difficult for her to swallow for fear that it might cut her skin.

He shook his head in disappointed before getting off of her.

"Hinata, you're clearly not focusing. What's the point of training if your mind keeps wandering elsewhere?"

Sasuke was the type of man who took training very seriously like his father. He had one ground rule for training: to dedicate both your mind and body. He would not tolerate half hearted trainings.

The kunai was safely retreat back into his weapon pouch. He stood upright with his arms crossed, ready to give her a good lecture.

"Hinata, training is very important. You have to understand that-oof!"

His sentence was cut off with a sharp grunt.

Hinata had taken advantage of him by striking a low kick to his shin while his guard was down. He leaped a safe distance away from his opponent.

"You know, that was a little underhanded..."

He was beginning to block a series of strikes from her kicks and the Gentle Fist. Making eye contact with her, he noticed that she had her byakugan activated.

He smirked.

_'Seems like she's getting serious. Good.'_

In a matter of minutes the both of them ended up wrestling on the ground with their kunais out.

"I'm not going to go easy on you!" he growled.

"Neither will I!"

Hinata, who was on top of him, received a harsh kick to her abdomen causing her to groan in pain. Her assailant took the chance to push her off. Unfortunately for him, she recovered fast enough to grab him by his ankle. He fell forward, earning himself a busted chin.

"Twin Lion Fist!"

He was quick enough to do a substitution jutsu before her deadly fists connected with him. Before she could recover, he appeared behind her and tackled her from behind. He lay on top of her back while securing both her hands above her head.

"That's enough for today."

He released his hold, allowing her to roll on her back.

Hinata's training outfit was dishevelled in such a way that he was able to see her black lace bra almost completely exposed.

He placed both hands on the grass on either side of her head, entrapping her.

"You know... you did better than I expected," he said in a husky voice.

His eyes drooped down to her exposed lingerie.

Unconsciously, he placed his index finger on her neck, gently trailing it down to her cleavage.

"S-Sasuke!"

He landed hard on his bottom and cursed under his breath. Hinata immediately stood up, fixing her clothes while stomping away from her lecherous husband.

"We need to go to get some groceries done."

Sasuke, still sprawled on the field, propped his head on his arms lazily.

"You're so fun to tease." He smirked.

* * *

"How's Sakura?" Ino asked worriedly.

After evacuating to Suna and Naruto's sudden disappearance, things hadn't been going well with Sakura. She seemed more fatigued than usual. It was suspected that it was due to all the stress she had undergone. Not only had she lost her home, but her love as well.

She was sleeping peacefully with a dripper attached to her arm. Only the soft humming of the humidifier and murmurs of the women were heard.

Tsunade who was sitting next to the hospital bed shook her head.

"She's still needs plenty of rest. The poor girl..."

The blonde kunoichi clenched her fists.

"That damn idiot! How could he do this to her? He should stop chasing after that hopeless bastard. Can't he set his priorities straight?"

"Ino, lower your voice."

"Sorry..."

Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Anyway, there were other signs related to her fatigue. I know it's been a few days now and it's rather worrisome. Stamina medications haven't been giving a lot of help either; she's still not revitalized."

Ino looked at the former Hokage, urging her to continue.

"So, I did another blood check on her and discovered that there was a slight change in her blood pressure, but it's not life threatening."

The blonde sighed in relief.

"But that's not something to relax about."

"Huh? What do you mean I can't relax yet? Is there actually something more to her symptoms?"

Ino asked worriedly.

Tsunade let out a frustrated breath. "I don't know how to break this news to you but...Ino...Sakura is..."

Ino walked through the corridors of the hospital with the sharp smell of antiseptics assaulting her nose. She replayed her previous discussion with Tsunade and her mind went instantly numb. She lethargically lay against the white walls of the hospital. Her legs trembled, making her slide down onto the cold tiled floor.

"This c-can't be happening! What are we going to do? No, what's Sakura going to do? She doesn't deserve this," Ino sobbed.

_'Naruto! This is your entire fault you jerk! I hate you for this...I hate you...I hate you!"_

Sai who happened to be on his way to check his team mate Sakura found a distressed sobbing Ino curled up by the wall.

"Ino? What's wrong?"

He approached her hunched figure, unsure of what to do in this situation.

"I-it's Sakura..."

She started rambling on through her chocked sobs, which made it hard for Sai to understand her.

"Come on, let's go to the cafeteria. We can grab some tea until you've calmed down enough to tell me Sakura's condition."

He offered his hand which Ino hesitantly took.

* * *

Naruto groggily opened his eyes. He was all battered, bloody and beaten nearly to death. He glared at his mysterious assailant with his partially closed eyes. Blood was pouring out of his mouth it didn't seem like it would stop. He could feel his life slowly seeping away along with his bleeding wounds. A large gaping hole was made through his chest.

_'Tch. Am I going to die here? Damn it, I can't believe I would die before even seeing the enemy's face. I didn't even sense him coming!'_

The fallen hero was panting for his last few breaths.

_'No...I...don't want to die yet...I...still have a lot of things...Sakura...Sasuke...Hinata...must...save...'_

His bright blue eyes were dim, its fire slowly burning away. He could vaguely see his foe approach him.

"Uzumaki Naruto. If you promise to cooperate with me, I'll give you another chance to live."

_'Hang in there kid! I refuse to let you die!'_

_'K-Kurama?'_

"...o...to...h-hell..."

The other man ignored his comment.

"Well, whether you want to cooperate with me or not, it doesn't matter anyway. I only want the Kyuubi in you. That's all there is to it."

_'...shit...'_

Naruto could see the other man's gloved hand reaching towards his face.

"Now if you don't mind, I would like to perform the 'extraction'."

_'Naruto! You gotta pull yourself together this instant—"_

"This is such a pitiful world; don't you hate it, boy? Your village shunned you, your friend betrayed you twice. Not to mention you grew up without any parents. The third Hokage refused to tell you the truth; he's been sheltering you with sad lies. Don't you hate it all?"

_'Not...true...never...hated...em'_

"And that treacherous Uchiha, do you know how many lives have suffered because of him? Didn't you want revenge? He took advantage of your kindness and look at him now. You're such a naive child."

"...Sa...su..."

That's right, Sasuke ruined everything. He destroyed his home, and ruined so many lives as well as his dream. The reason why he wanted to chase him again was to end his life. He wouldn't make the same mistake again.

The man chuckled deeply.

"It's hard to love everything isn't it? It's good to just hate everything right?"

Naruto's vision turned red. His mind was flooded with nothing but sadness and hate. No, he didn't want to go back to being lonely. He was so scared of being alone. His parents, he wanted them so bad!

_'Naruto-!'_

Kurama's voice vanished amidst the sea of his bitter memories.

"Bathe in hate! But fear not, for I will make a new world where hate and pain does not exist. Everyone will live in pure bliss. A dream which will be their reality."

* * *

Since Bird country was a safe place, Sasuke didn't object the idea of letting Hinata shop on her own. Besides, if anything happened, he would be able to know due to their blood contract. Not to mention she would hate it if he was to follow her everywhere like a dog. As long as she wore her contact lenses and use her public name 'Mikoto', he wouldn't need to worry as much. Thus the Uchiha was now laying on his futon, reading his clan's scroll to understand more about the use of the sharingan. There were still many hidden secrets in the dojutsu and he was thirsting to find more information.

Amidst the bustle of the market, Hinata was bargaining enthusiastically with the stall owners.

"No can do, miss. This is already the lowest price we can offer!"

The old man grumbled.

"But can't you lower it down just a little bit more?"

"Sorry, I can't. Gotta make a living too 'ya know?"

Hinata pouted and reluctantly handed the money to purchase the fish.

_'Well, I think I got everything I need for tonight's dinner.'_

Passersby were staring at her; some were leering, some looked at her with admiration or jealousy but she ignored them. Maybe she should have had worn a more conservative kimono?

_'But I don't have one_' she sighed.

Besides, Sasuke said it was appropriate. He said it was perfectly fine and it was what she usually wore anyway.

Hinata was heading home when she decided to take a detour at the river. With the blearing sun above her, it was a perfect opportunity to soak her feet in the cool water.

She was already near the river bank when she saw a figure sitting against a tree. It was a woman.

"Excuse me..."

It was a beautiful woman, who seemed to be slightly younger than her, with long soft violet hair which was dishevelled with expensive looking hair ornaments. She noticed that her, probably once beautiful red kimono, was covered with dirt and grime. Hinata was caught off guard when her beautiful amber eyes met with her 'brown' ones.

"Oh, I'm saved!"

Hinata rushed towards the younger woman, carefully examining her.

"Are you hurt? You look like you just had a fall!"

"Yes I did, and it was a big one," she said sheepishly.

The kunoichi examined her leg, which seemed to be fractured.

"Stay still, I'm going to heal you. Afterwards, I'm taking you home with me to give you some herbs. Where do you live?"

Light green chakra was produced from her hand. She proceeded with the healing as her hands hovered over the injured leg.

"I don't have a home. I ran away."

Hinata looked at her with surprise.

"You see, I worked at a tea house in another town but the owner there hasn't been treating me properly so I decided to run away. I happened to stumble across this area and fell from that hill over there."

She pointed towards the 'hill' which she fell from. That was not what she would call a 'hill' Hinata was bemused. It was more like a cliff!

"You fell off a cliff and managed to survive with only a fractured leg?"

"Well I was lucky enough to land on a tree before falling off of it," she said sheepishly.

"Well, this should do."

Their faces were only inches apart when Hinata gave her a warm smile, making her blush.

"Your face is red. Are you feeling sick?"

She reached out her hand to get a feel of her forehead.

"I-I'm feeling fine! My name is Midori by the way."

Midori motioned to grasp Hinata's hand which was on her forehead.

"It's nice to meet you Midori! I'm H—Mikoto."

Hinata managed to catch her tongue on time before slipping out her real name.

"I'll take you to the river to get cleaned up. Can you walk?"

Midori stood up to test her healed leg. She nodded in response.

"Alright, but just hold on to my hand just in case."

Her gentle hand caressed against hers.

_'Her hands are so soft and cool. Feels nice to hold her hand in this hot weather.'_

She was still holding her hand when they reached the waters. Hinata had to give a gentle tug to signal the other girl.

"Oh! S-sorry. My mind was elsewhere."

Midori slipped her hands out of Hinata's grasp.

"Thanks."

She was instructed to take out her hair ornaments which she did. A wet handkerchief made contact with her dirty face. The pamper she was receiving made her feel warm. Hinata tilted her face gently to get a better angle. She gently patted her cheek with the cool cloth.

"I love your hair. It's so pretty," she complemented.

Midori flushed.

"But I think your hair looks nicer, Mikoto-san. It looks so soft, may I feel it?"

Hinata unknotted her hair, letting it fall elegantly over her shoulders. While she was busy taking care of Midori's hair, the latter examined with the former's. It was so soft, probably softer than hers and it smelled so sweet.

"Mikoto-san, what's your cup size?" she blurted out all of a sudden.

Hinata flustered. "W-why do you ask all of a sudden?"

"I was just curious. A girl's gotta ask," she shrugged.

"Uh, well—"

"There's no need to be shy, we're both girls anyway," Midori giggled.

"To be honest I don't know," she said meekly.

Midori turned to look at Hinata. "Then show me. I can determine your size if you show me."

"Midori!"

"What? We're girls! Nothing to be shy about. There's not a single thing I've never seen before, trust me."

_'She does have a point.'_ Hinata reasoned. Besidees, what harm would it do? She was always curious about her size anyway. And asking Sasuke was not an option. She made a move to slide off the fabric off her shoulders.

Midori nearly chocked when she saw the other woman's fully developed bossom. They were the largest she had ever seen and they looked so bouncy. She wondered what it would feel like if she touched them. Absent minded, she groped Hinata's right breast, which made her squeak. Just looking at her pretty flushed cheeks made Midori feel excited. She was already closing the distance between them. Hinata's mind went blank she didn't know what the other was doing.

"Mikoto!"

It was a man's stern voice.

Hinata whipped her head towards the direction of the voice. Sasuke stood a few meters away from them by the bank.

_'Who the hell is this woman and what does she think she's doing to MY wife? Heck, she won't even let me touch her, and yet she lets another woman?'_

Sasuke was not pleased at what he saw. He was literally watching his wife getting molested in front of his very own eyes! It was obvious that, whoever the other person was, was making a bold move on her. If it was another man, he would maim them and slowly burn them with his amaterasu.

"What are you doing?"He didn't bother to hide his distaste.

Realising her current state, Hinata swiftly put her kimono back on securely.

"W-well, I found her injured so I was helping her."

"Oh, really?"

"It's true," she defended.

"Then tell me why you seem to be enjoying being molested by her?" he bit out.

"What? No! You got it all wrong—"

"I was trying to check her cup size," Midori interjected.

There was a pregnant pause. Hinata was so embarrassed that she felt like crawling into a hole.

"Bullshit." Was Sasuke's reply.

"Fugaku-kun don't be so rude!"

"She was clearly—"

Honestly, what was wrong with Sasuke? It's like he has some kind of drastic mood swing. He was so sweet, kind, and caring just a few days ago and now he was being such a...a jerk!

_'Note to self, Sasuke has severe mood swings.'_

"Whatever, I don't care what you say. I'm taking her home!"

"No. Way. In. Hell."

She was getting fed up with her husband's childish tantrum. He was being unreasonably selfish!

"I say so and that's final."

This was their first argument and Hinata couldn't believe it was over something ridiculous.

"No."

"I can't believe you're being so childish!"

"Me? Childish?" he snorted.

He admitted maybe he was being childish, but he was trying to protect what was his. The moment he saw her face, he had a change of heart. He couldn't bear to see Hinata cry and that was what she was very close on doing.

"Tch. Fine, whatever."

Sasuke decided he needed to blow off some steam so he headed elsewhere.

"Honestly!" Hinata mumbled.

"I'm sorry. It's because of me that you two..."

"Oh, don't worry about it; he could be such a child sometimes. Come on, let's go."

Sasuke was beyond pissed. Taking out his anger on the poor boulder was a good choice. It was eventually scarred with marks from his kunai and smeared with the blood from his fist. Once he's done, he was going to have a good long talk with Hinata. Hopefully he would be able to get rid of the pest who had intruded into their lives. And once he gets rid of her, everything would be back to normal and he would have Hinata all to himself again.


End file.
